By Any Means
by The Revolutionary Ronin
Summary: Long ago there existed a guild that fought outside the law in order to preserve it. This guild produced numerous legends that became infamous in history. They dirtied their hands in blood to protect the peace of Fiore. This guild was known as Shadow Heart, a dark guild. Now only one member is left and he will protect Fiore by any means necessary.
1. Prologue: A Shadow Emerges

Disclaimer – I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail

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By Any Means

Chapter 1 – A Shadow Emerges

0o0o0o0

Fiore, a neutral kingdom of 17 million, is a world filled with magic. Magic is the people's source of income, both bartering and selling and using the mystical arts to make a living. These people became known as Mages and belonged to guilds that accepted jobs sent to them.

Long ago there existed a guild that fought outside the law in order to preserve it. This guild produced numerous legends that became infamous in history. They dirtied their hands in blood to protect the peace of Fiore. This guild was known as Kage Heart, a dark guild.

0o0o0o0

"Hargeon huh?" a lanky blonde said as he stepped off the train that he'd arrived to the port city on, "Not bad. I wonder what kind of work I can find here," The blonde took off from the station, no one noticing him as he disappeared in a shroud of shadows.

0o0o0o0

"EH! This is such a common celestial key! HOW COULD IT BE 20,000 JEWEL!?" a young blonde girl, about the age of 17, yelled at the old man behind the magic shop's counter, "THIS IS HIGHWAY ROBBERY!"

"Highway robbery to you, making a living to me," the old mage said nonchalantly to the girl, simply waving her off.

"But surely you could lower the price for me, Oji-sama," the girl winked and posed seductively, accentuating her womanly charm.

0o0o0o0

"I can't believe he only lowered it 1,000 jewel! Is that all my charm is worth?" the girl hung her head low, disappointed that she had no bartering skills whatsoever, "He's capitalizing on the fact he's the only Magic store in the town," Sighing she looked at her newly acquired key, "At least I have a new friend now."

"KYAH!"

The girl lifted her head up at the sound of multiple girls screaming and looked over the bridge she was walking on to see a big crowd forming.

"Salamander-sama is here!"

"I can't believe a famous mage like Salamander-sama has come here!"

Two girls ran passed the girl toward the crowd.

"Hoh! Salamander is said to use Magic that can't be bought! He's here?" Following suit the girl rushed to join the crowd.

"What a dreamboat!"

"He's so cool!"

"Please burn me Salamander-sama!"

The girl's heartbeat fastened at the sight of the purple-haired mage. He was the essence of cool, with a suave hair-style, a white button up shirt with red edges, striped red pants, a small cross scar above his right eye, golden bracelets with two rings on his right hand, and most importantly his purple and gold cape that billowed in the wind.

"_Wh-why is my heart beating like this? Could… could this be what they call love at first sight?_" the girl asked as she slowly hopped on one foot to get closer to Salamander.

"You're all too kind," Salamander humbled himself as he addressed all of the girls surrounding him before looking at the blonde girl in brown knee-high boots, a blue plaid skirt with a whip at her waist, a white collared zip up blouse with blue edging, and a blue ribbon on the right making a small ponytail hop towards him. He smirked at the infatuation in her brown eyes.

"_Kyah! Is it because he's famous? Is this the reason for my heart aching for him?_" the girl bounced her way into the center of the crowd where Salamander was and as she made to introduce herself a voice spoke up.

"Who the hell are you?" everyone turned to see a lanky blond wearing a black and orange jacket, black pants that were wrapped in white banding, black sandals, a black backpack, and several pouches lining his belt loops. Three long scars ran along both sides of his face making him look almost like a fox and his azure eyes seemed to almost glow, "I thought it would be Dragneel and it's just some two-bit nobody," he then turned and left leaving all the girls glaring at him for calling Salamander a nobody.

"Oi! Don't you know who I am? I'M SALAMANDER!" the Mage could only stare in shock as the other man walked away.

The girl's heart slowed and realization dawned on her as her love for Salamander turned to disgust.

"How rude!" some of the girls jumped the blonde and began to pummel him into the ground.

"Salamander-sama is a great mage! Show some respect!"

"Now, now. That's enough. He mustn't have recognized me is all," Salamander played off the earlier dismissal as the girls wailed on the other man.

"Hmm. Sorry, I don't recognize you," a voice behind Salamander caused everyone to turn around and stare wide-eyed to see the blond leaning against a building casually.

"B-but you were!" turning back to the girls that had attacked the blonde they saw nothing but a broken piece of wood beneath the girls.

"Ah… Here!" quickly pulling out a marker and paper Salamander marked it with his signature and walked over to the blonde and handed it to him, "My autograph. Feel free to brag amongst your friends that you met me."

Most of the women could only stare in awe at Salamander's generosity.

"No thanks," the blonde gave a foxy smile and shoved Salamander's hand out aside and began to walk away once more.

The girls growled at his retreating form only looking back at Salamander when he decided to break the awkward silence, "Well, I have business at the port, and must be on my way."

"Aww! You're leaving already?"

"Don't leave us because of that jealous guy!"

Smirking Salamander closed his eyes before snapping his fingers and invoking a spell, "Red Carpet!" a ring of light purple fire rose around the Mage before rushing beneath him and lifting him up.

The women were once more awestruck by Salamander's abilities.

"I'm having a party on my private yacht later tonight! All of you are of course invited!" with that said Salamander flew off toward the port.

0o0o0o0

"Excuse me!" the blonde girl had finally caught up to the mysterious blonde from before bowing slightly in apology for disrupting him.

"Don't worry about it," the blonde bowed back, letting her know that he wasn't bothered by her intrusion, "What can I do for you?"

"I wanted to thank you for earlier," the girl bowed once more.

"Huh? Earlier?" the girl could tell that he was confused.

"You saved me from that creep's love charm. Please let me repay you," bowing once more the girl pleaded to show her appreciation.

"Creep?" the blonde cocked his head to the side before realization struck him, "Oh! You mean that fake Salamander guy!"

"Yes. He was using a love charm on all those girls earlier," the girl let out an annoyed growl, "It's pathetic at how far some people will go to be popular. Anyway, let me treat you to lunch or something."

"Well I haven't eaten yet… sure why not. My name's Naruto by the way," Naruto stuck his hand out for the girl to shake.

"Lucy. It's a pleasure to meet you Naruto," Lucy smiled brightly as she shook the other blonde's hand.

0o0o0o0

Lucy couldn't help the blush on her face.

As soon as they had sat down, Lucy had finally taken the time to study Naruto's appearance in better detail.

Bright golden locks flew in a wild manner, nearly no fat marred his face, oceanic irises with an intense look to them as they scanned the menu to discover what his wonderful full-lipped mouth would devour, and 3 whisker-like scars adorned either side of his cheeks that made him look almost like a fox. His black and orange jacket seemed to reinforce his foxlike appearance. He seemed to be around 19 or 20 but Lucy couldn't tell for sure. All in all Naruto was fairly good-looking.

"Hmm… it all looks so good. I wish they had ramen though. Ah I guess I'll have to try one of everything!" Naruto had made his decision and turned toward the blushing waitress who had been standing there waiting patiently for him to decide and quickly jotted down his order.

Lucy felt a glare come her way when the waitress left and could only glare back. Realization struck as Lucy's brain finally decided to function once more and deciphered Naruto's order, "O-one of everything?"

"Well I couldn't decide. Besides the food here isn't that expensive," Naruto smiled at her and Lucy could feel heat rise in her cheeks.

"R-right. So anyway that Salamander guy was using a love charm spell to infatuate all those girls. I think its despicable that he would stoop so low even though he's already famous," Lucy explained, "The sale of those kind of charms was banned years ago," she could feel nothing but disgust at the thought.

"Well that's what happens when someone pretends to be who they're not," Naruto replied leaning back against his booth and stretching his arms out.

"What do you mean?" Lucy asked, unsure of Naruto's reply.

"Salamander is a Fairy Tail mage and his real name is Natsu Dragneel. Though I've never met him the rumors say that Natsu has rose-pink hair and a scale-like scarf that he wears at all times. Not to mention a destructive fire magic that can't be bought anywhere," Naruto yawned slightly before perking up at the sight of the waitress bringing his food.

"So you mean to tell me that creep wasn't even the real Salamander?" Lucy asked as she watched Naruto dig in to the food.

"Itadakimasu!" taking a few bites of steak, before looking back at Lucy, "No and that concerns me. Why would he pretend to be someone with a known description if all he's looking for is popularity without looking like the person he's pretending to be? What's more suspicious is his use of an illegal contraband. My guess is that he's using it to make sure everyone around him can't think properly. It makes you wonder what he's really up too."

"I… never thought about it like that. You don't think he's going to do anything bad do you? I mean he didn't seem like a bad guy. A creep for sure, but not a criminal," Lucy said not believing what was being insinuated.

"It's possible. All too much do criminals pretend to be innocent to avoid getting the attention of proper authorities," Naruto went back to devouring his free meal.

Silence fell between the two before Lucy decided to ask Naruto the question that had been burning in her mind since she first met him, "Um… Naruto-san are you a mage?"

"I am," was the short answer she got.

"Really!? Are you perhaps part of a guild? I'm a mage myself and have yet to join one. Although I would love to join Fairy Tail, I imagine getting into such a famous guild would be very difficult and I'm not sure I could pass any kind of interview or test that they would give me but just the thought of being a Fairy Tail mage makes me pretty happy on the inside!" Lucy let a content smile fall on her face as she clasped her cheeks at her dream guild. Realizing he was staring Lucy apologized, "Sorry… I must seem silly for having such a big dream."

"Not at all. It's good to have dreams and goals. I was once a part of a guild but it disbanded long ago. However, there was a motto that it followed," Naruto paused for a moment making sure he had Lucy's attention, "Live by the 'Will of Fire' and do everything by any means."

"The 'Will of Fire'?" Lucy repeated back to Naruto.

"Yeah. The founders of the guild come from another continent called the Elemental Nations where each land is divided by an element. Theirs was the Land of Fire. Fire is the most important of all the elements. Without fire we wouldn't have light to guide us, to keep us warm on the coldest of nights, or to heat our food. Even the smallest of embers can have the will to become a raging fire. The 'Will of Fire' means to never give up no matter what. My parents told me that every night when I was just a kid," Naruto closed his eyes at the memories.

"It sounds like it was an amazing guild," Lucy smiled at the thought of what a guild like that does, "What happened?" Realizing that she may have brought up bad memories, Lucy quickly waved her question, "You don't have to tell me of course."

After an awkward silence for Lucy, Naruto spoke up, "13 years ago we were attacked. We put up a good fight but in the end we were utterly crushed. As far as I know only my Master and I survived," Naruto had closed his eyes.

"I… I am so sorry. If I knew I wouldn't have asked," Lucy bowed her head in shame.

"Don't worry about it. You didn't know. Besides it happened a long time ago. Plus as long as I breathe my guild will never die," Naruto smiled to reassure Lucy that she didn't need to apologize, "You know I think you should make your dream come true."

"But I'm not anything special. I mean Salamander isn't even the tip of the iceberg when it comes to famous Mages from Fairy Tail. There's Titania, Queen of the Fairies, Mirajane, Laxus, Gildarts, Loke who was voted 'Mage who you most want as a boyfriend,' and so many more! And I'm nobody," Lucy admitted much to her own dismay.

"You just need some confidence is all. All of these famous mages you're telling me about weren't always known. They had to work hard and build a reputation. They never gave up no matter what they faced. Believe in yourself Lucy-san and you'll be amazed with what you can do. Anyway I need to get going. Thanks for the meal," Naruto got up from the booth and left the restaurant.

"_Is it really that simple? To just believe in my own abilities?_" Lucy sat at the booth for a while longer before she too left.

0o0o0o0

"Ah. So this is where you ran off too!" Lucy jumped at the sudden voice coming from a bush behind the park bench she had decided to sit on in order to think about what Naruto said.

"S-Salamander!" Lucy went rigid at the sight of the pretender.

"I've been looking everywhere for you. I wanted to personally invite you to the party on my yacht tonight," Salamander gazed at her with his self-confident smirk as he activated his love charm.

Glaring at him Lucy pointed at him, "Tch. That spell's weakness is awareness! It doesn't affect anyone that knows what's going on. You're the absolute worst!"

Playing off her accusation, Salamander grunted with being impressed, "It's as I thought. When I first laid eyes on you, I knew that you were a Mage. So please come to my party tonight, perhaps we can exchange some spells and possibly even you joining my guild, Fairy Tail."

"Please I know you're a fake. If you're going to pretend to be someone you're not at least have the decency to look somewhat like them," Lucy turned her back and crossed her arms, "Besides I'd never go to some creep's party."

"I'm a creep?" Salamander's confidence fell down the drown for a brief moment.

"Lying to people about who you are and using a charm to prevent anyone from questioning you? Just how low are willing to stoop for fame?" Lucy asked completely sickened by the sight of the man.

Salamander waggled his finger in front of his face, "It's nothing more than a formality. I simply want to feel like a celebrity during my parties. No real harm, you see?"

"But you're still riding off someone else's accomplishments. Using their hard work just to have a good time, despicable!" Lucy could no longer look at the creep.

"You're really going to make me do this the hard way aren't you?" Salamander's voice became dangerously low.

"What do you mean!?" Lucy turned around to face Salamander once more but as soon as she did she felt her eyelids become heavy and begin to droop.

"My love charm isn't the only charm I use. Sweetu dreams slave," with that Lucy's world became black.

0o0o0o0

"Knight-Captain! There've been rumors that Bora of the Prominence has been spotted in the town and around the port. At the same time Salamander of Fairy Tail has also been rumored to have been in town as well," a Sgt. Knight reported, kneeling, to the head of security of Hargeon.

"Salamander isn't a problem as long as he doesn't cause any trouble. Ignore him for now. Bora on the other hand is a wanted criminal. If he's here than that only means he's up to no good. There's been rumors about him lately and that he's been getting in deep in slavery. We must apprehend him immediately!" The Knight-Captain spoke passionately as he slammed his fists down onto his desk, "I want every road blocked and for the entire port to be shut down. Bora must not escape!"

"Sir! There's one more thing Knight-Captain," the Sgt. remained kneeling.

"Speak."

"Some of the townsfolk spoke about a mysterious young man wearing a black coat with red clouds on it. The same kind that the dark guild, Shadow Heart, used to wear," the Knight-Captain's eyes widened.

"It's impossible. Every member of Shadow Heart was killed 13 years ago and their guild was completely annihilated. Tell every Knight on duty that if they see this boy to bring him in for questioning. Shadow Heart was one of the worst dark guilds to ever exist in Fiore. They made the current alliances of dark guilds look like nothing more than delinquents. However, keep the focus on Bora. We don't need to cause panic about a dark guild being present in the town or port!"

"Sir!" the Sgt. left to deliver his orders.

"Shadow Heart. You swore yourselves to be protectors of Fiore and yet you were merely insuring no one else could get in your way," the Knight-Captain sighed as he remembered a time he would be glad to see the infamous black coats with red clouds and didn't notice the shadow dismiss itself from his office.

0o0o0o0

Slowly Lucy's vision returned to her and wished it hadn't.

Looking around, Lucy found that she was chained to a couch along with several other girls who had been dressed in ballroom dresses, their hair done up and make-up applied accenting all of their natural beauty.

"I see that you've awakened Lucy-chan. I do hope your current state of attire pleases you. Your dress is one of my best," Lucy couldn't help the shudder rolling down her spine at the sound of Salamander's voice.

Looking down Lucy took in her own appearance and hated to agree with Salamander when he said that her dress was beautiful. It was slim with a blood red rose color to it and a simple slit on the side to show off the wearer's right leg off.

Getting mad, Lucy looked at Salamander with nothing but hate, "Naruto was right! You're using your magic to lure in unsuspecting women and then kidnapping them! You're the worst kind of mage out there!"

"Perhaps. After all slavers aren't normally called nice things now are they?" Salamander chuckled to himself.

"Y-you're a slaver?" Lucy's eyes widened as she realized just what kind of position she was in.

"That's right. All of you stupid women are going to be sold at the highest price as love slaves. You'll know nothing but the torturous pleasure of being fucked and beaten by your soon to be masters. I do admit that parting with you without breaking you in myself brings me sorrow but virgins do go for high prices and you're just too innocent to be anything but," Salamander had grabbed another girl that had awoken and began to mead one of her breasts despite her pleas for him to stop, "It's been quite a while since a woman has given me so much trouble."

"I-I'm going to…" Lucy didn't want to believe that this was real, "_No. Nonononono! This isn't happening. This can't be how the rest of the world thinks! I left home to escape being a slave and now… now I'm going to become a real one!_"

"_The 'Will of Fire' means to never give up, no matter what. Believe in yourself and you'll be amazed by what you can do."_

Naruto's words came back to Lucy and confidence filled her as she reached for her celestial keys only to realize that they were most likely taken away from her, "_Damn it. I need to think of something else._"

"Looking for these?" Lucy turned her attention back to Salamander as he dangled her key ring and all of her keys in front of her, "You won't be needing them so I'll dispose of them for you," Salamander threw the keys out an open port window and could only feel glee as he watched Lucy's hope drain from her face, "I just love that look on a woman. All women should have that look. The look of despair as they realize their place and role is to only ever serve men. Allow me to demonstrate," Salamander turned his attention back to the girl struggling in his arms and began to mead her breast harder eliciting cries of both pleasure and pain from her mouth before kissing her to make her silent.

Lucy refused to look as the poor girl was about to be raped in front of her, "_None of this is right. Please, somebody save me!_"

"RASENGAN!"

Crashing through the ceiling above as one of Salamander's men and a black shadow which immediately struck all of Salamander's men with a flurry of oddly shaped knives, some even having three prongs on them before the shadow turned into a yellow flash making short work of the remaining men.

"What the hell!" Salamander exclaimed as all of his best men were killed in a blink of an eye.

Slowly a shadow rose out of the ground and took form of a hooded man. Red clouds decorated the black coat that surrounded the man's body. Glowing, slit red eyes bore themselves into the soul of any that were foolish enough to look into them.

"What the hell are you?!" Salamander glared at the monster before him.

Lucy couldn't believe what she'd just witnessed. In a matter of seconds Bora's men, who had seemed so strong, had been reduced to gory messes on the ground, "_Who is that? What is that? I don't understand._"

"Bora of the Prominence, current slaver and former mage of Titan Nose, you're actions have deemed you a threat to Fiore and as such you must be eliminated by any means," the voice carried with it no emotion, no humanity, and no mercy.

Lucy felt afraid. Never before had she seen someone die before. More and more everything around her was becoming nothing but a horrible nightmare that she couldn't wake from. This was all so wrong.

"Eliminate me!? Who the fuck do you think you're kidding boy! You think you can just show up and play hero? There are over 100 men on this ship all skilled mages that even the Knights of Magi fear to take on! What makes you think you have a chance against them? Let alone me?" Bora asked, allowing his pride to get the better of him.

"Hn. I don't think the Knights of Magi need to fear them any longer then," again the words held nothing behind them.

"Oh and why is that?"

"Because I already killed them," Bora's, Lucy's and all the girls that had awakened felt their eyes widened as the curtain separating the rest of the ballroom and part of the deck fell to reveal a massacre of blood and gore.

"This isn't possible. How? How did you kill them without raising the alarm? No one could do such a thing, not even a Mage!" Bora stiffened as a cold blade rested against his neck, the cloaked figure in front of him dissolving into thin air.

"Because I'm not a mage," The shadow pushed the blade into the slavers throat and cut it open, a spray of blood gushing everywhere and even on some of the women, "I'm a shinobi."

"Wh-what are you?" Lucy couldn't believe what she'd just witnessed

"These belong to you," The monster, for that was the only description Lucy could give the man before her, reached into his coat and pulled out her celestial keys and tossed them to her, which landed at her feet with a clang, "The Knights of Magi should be here soon," that said the monster once again dissolved into nothing, leaving Lucy and the other girls amidst the gore and carnage on the ship.

0o0o0o0

The Knights of Magi eventually found the ship and all 37 girls that had been captured were freed. All had been taken to the local hospital for extreme trauma and analysis.

Several of the girls were in the process of being raped when their rapists had been killed.

Lucy's official statement was that Bora of the Prominence had targeted her in a park, trying to make her believe that he was Fairy Tail's Salamander to get her on his yacht. When that had failed he used a sleeping charm and kidnapped her. Upon waking, Lucy learned Bora planned on selling her as a sex-slave at the highest bid. At an unknown time a lone assailant attacked the ship and promptly killed Bora and all of his men before disappearing just as fast as he appeared.

Officially it was determined that a copycat of Shadow Heart was at large and deemed to be armed and dangerous with an unknown set of spells at his disposal. Some of Bora's men had been reduced to nothing more than a puddle of blood and bones and others had their insides completely torn apart without the skin being broken.

On the morning when Lucy was finally going to be released from the hospital and be allowed to leave Hargeon as the inspection finalized, she found a vase of flowers on the bedside table with a get well soon card attached to it.

_I'm sorry I didn't get to see you when you were awake but I have places to go. Don't let your experience here discourage you. Remember the 'Will of Fire' and you'll be amazed at what you can do. Don't be afraid to pursue your dreams because you never know what you may come to regret._

_Your Friend,_

_Naruto_

Later that day Lucy began her journey to the far-east town of Magnolia, home of Fairy Tail.

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Reedited 10-14-12


	2. Prologue: Returning Shadows

Disclaimer – I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail

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By Any Means

Chapter 2 – Returning Shadows

Soundtrack – Kanzen Kankaku Dreamer by One Ok Rock

0o0o0o0

Fiore, a neutral kingdom of 17 million, is a world filled with magic. Magic is the people's source of income, both bartering and selling and using the mystical arts to make a living. These people became known as Mages and belonged to guilds that accepted jobs sent to them.

Long ago there existed a guild that fought outside the law in order to preserve it. This guild produced numerous legends that became infamous in history. They dirtied their hands in blood to protect the peace of Fiore. This guild was known as Shadow Heart, a dark guild.

0o0 3 Days After Hargeon Massacre 0o0

"Naruto," the blond stopped in his tracks along the worn dirt path, "You've returned."

The morning mist began to clear and two figures became visible, "You should use less chakra in your **Mist** jutsu Kisame," a shark toothed grin split on one of the figures face, "It's good to be home Sensei."

0o0 1 Week After Hargeon Massacre 0o0

"Halt! I'm afraid we cannot let you pass here. We were told to be on the lookout for someone with your description: a black hooded trench coat, red clouds, and blonde hair. As of this moment you are under arrest for suspicions of killing over a hundred men in the port city of Hargeon as well as suspicion of being a slaver in league with Bora of the Prominence. Please do not resist arrest. We have one of the most powerful Mage Suppressors with us, Arthur Bislow the Forbidden Sealer!" the Knight-Captain Charles Stroid spoke proudly as all 25 of his best soldiers surrounded the lone traveler, "Now remove your hood and show us your face coward."

"Kuso," most of the men, including Charles and Arthur chuckled as their captive did as they said. Just as he clutched the edges the surrounded 'mage' spoke once more, "I hate it when egos are as large as yours," then to the astonishment of all the Knights of Magi and Bislow a flock of crows flew out from the hood and began to attack the unprepared group.

"Arthur dispel his illusion!" Charles swung his sword at the birds yet nothing he did seemed to harm them, all of his attacks phased through each bird.

"This is impossible! I can't suppress his magic!" Arthur screamed in pain as the crows began to peck and tear his flesh from his bone.

"AHHH!" one by one each knight was eaten alive by the flock.

Then it stopped. All 27 men were still standing where they had been when they surrounded the rogue mage who was now nowhere to be found. The birds, gone just as fast as they had come.

"It's impossible. We could feel him a kilometer away and now it's as if he was never here to begin with. No one could suppress that much magic energy! There aren't even any footprints in the dirt!" Arthur couldn't remove his eyes from the spot where the youth had been standing.

"A shadow of death," one of the Knights spoke shakily, "That was the name given to the monsters of Shadow Heart. They were thought to be descendants of Death itself! He's probably biding his time before he kills us all!" panic and fear spread as the Knights were unsure of what would happen next. However, nothing happened. They all just stood there, waiting.

Charles became shaded as he remembered what the Knight-Commander had told him before he and his company set up the road block, "_Whatever you do Charles do not underestimate this man. If he truly is from that guild, you must be ready to die for your country and King! It took a 100,000 Knights of Magi and all 10 Mage Saints of the time to end those monsters. We must not allow even a single man to bear their mark, even if he's nothing more than an imposter. I will not tolerate failure! Either return here with him in custody or don't return at all!_" Charles clenched his teeth as his fear subsided and anger at being humiliated filled him.

"Men! It was nothing more than an illusion! Steel yourselves and remember your oaths to both your country and your King! This bastard is nothing more than a coward, too afraid to face justice! We will not return home until he is in irons! He couldn't have gotten far. Fan out and bring this murderer to justice! FOR FIORE!" finding courage in Charles' words the 25 Knights of Magi marched out, leaving the Knight-Captain and Magic-Sealer behind.

"Knight-Captain," Charles looked toward Arthur, "Whatever magic was used here is one that I've never seen before. I will be nothing but a hindrance to you at this point and shall dismiss myself and return to the Council in Era," Turning so that both their backs were turned Arthur spoke words of wisdom, "Do not let a hurt pride consume you. In a hunt where the prey is a predator, one must have a constitution that cannot be broken lest you wish to kill yourself," His piece said the Mage walked away leaving the Knight-Captain to lament on his own.

"Whoever you are… I'll find you," Arthur gritted his teeth together before heading out in search of one of Fiore's greatest enemies.

0o0 Same Time – Magnolia 0o0

Lucy stared up at the large doors of Fairy Tail's guild, gulping nervously. She had been standing before the guild hall for 30 minutes already and had yet to even knock.

"_You just need some confidence is all. All of these famous mages you're telling me about weren't always known. They had to work hard and build a reputation. They never gave up no matter what they faced. Believe in yourself Lucy-san and you'll be amazed with what you can do_," Naruto's words ran through her head. Gulping down her fears, Lucy began to open the enormous door before her and was suddenly flying through the air as a kick from behind forced both doors to open.

"WAHHHH!" Lucy impacted with the far wall next to the bar.

"We're back!" a pink-haired youth with a scale-like scarf yelled out to the numerous mages and wizards eating and conversing among one another.

"Aye!" a blue coated cat saluted as he jumped up and down excitedly.

"God damn it Natsu!" a pink-haired girl stood up from her seat and marched over to the duo of boy and cat, "You were dropped as a baby weren't you! You just sent someone flying into the bar! That's the fifth time this month you've done that! What are we supposed to drink if you keep destroying everything? Not to mention the hospital bills that you keep racking up because you can't control yourself! Idiot!" the girl sandwiched, the now identified, Natsu and cat's heads together with her fists.

"That's enough Sakura. You know Natsu didn't mean anything by it," the silver-haired barmaid, Mirajane Strauss smiled sweetly at seeing the two siblings interact.

"Fine," Sakura Haruno, Fairy Tail's nurse, dropped her self-appointed brother and his cat flat on their backs and marched back over to her seat next to Cana Alberona, Fairy Tail's heaviest drinker.

Natsu grumbled about the monstrous strength his older sister possessed, "Where are you rat-face!"

"Hey! Who the heck are you calling rat-face!" a nameless mage yelled gaining Natsu's attention.

"You!" Natsu kicked the other mage square in the face, causing him to destroy the table he was seated at by flying through it, "You lied to me about the Salamander! When I got to Hargeon, they wouldn't let me into the city because of some accident caused by an imposter pretending to be me! There wasn't even a dragon!"

"Don't blame me! I was only passing on some rumors I heard about!"

"Errr! You wanna fight!" Natsu yelled as his fists were engulfed in fire and pounced before the other mage could decline.

"He'll never change," Sakura grumbled before taking another drink of beer, "Mira! How's the girl?"

"She seems fine," Mirajane smiled as she helped the poor girl up and get her bearings, "Are you ok?"

"I think so…" Lucy stared wide-eyed at her ideal mage, Mirajane Strauss: The Demon Overtaker of Fairy Tail and current barmaid as well as Sorcerer Magazine's number one swimsuit model, "M-Mirajane!"

"That would be my name yes. I imagine you've seen my spreads in the Sorcerer," Mirajane blushed embarrassed at her celebrity status.

"I'd like to meet the fool who doesn't know who you are and ask what planet he's from. I'm Sakura Haruno, Fairy Tail's official combat medic. I'm sorry for my idiot brother over there unfortunately, he was born with the brain of a caveman. You're sure that you weren't hurt? No pain anywhere?" Sakura had sauntered over to the blonde and barmaid, managing to avoid being caught in the escalating bar fight that Natsu had started.

"I'm fine, really. Thank you. My name is Lucy," Lucy stuck her hand out in greeting.

"Well then, it's nice to meet you Lucy," Sakura smiled as she shook Lucy's outstretched hand.

"What business brings you to Fairy Tail, Lucy? Is it a mission request?" Mirajane asked.

"No," Lucy gulped down her nervousness and breathed out slowly, "_I can do this_," "I came to" Lucy was cut off by a naked body slamming into her.

"Hahaha! Missing something Gray?" Natsu taunted as he swung Gray Fullbuster's boxers on his index finger.

"Natsu!" Sakura had fire in her eyes as she slammed her fists together, charging a spell.

"For Christ's sake, you're all a bunch of noisy babies," Cana pulled out a magic card and prepared to cast her magic.

"Damn it Natsu I'll get you for that," Gray stood up from a now completely crushed and flustered Lucy. Feeling a draft Gray looked down and took notice of his nudity, "Excuse me miss, may I borrow your underwear?"

"The hell you can," Lucy immediately slapped Gray away from her.

"Honestly Gray that's not how you treat a lady," Loki, Fairy Tail's most eligible bachelor, began to charge his ring magic.

"Real men fight with their fist!" Elfman Strauss pumped his fist up, activating his overtake magic and encased his right arm in stone.

"That's enough!" a giant slammed his foot down as everyone stopped and looked to him.

"_Huge!_" was all that Lucy could think of.

"Oh? Master you were there this whole time?" Mirajane smiled sweetly at the giant.

The giant turned to the silver haired girl, "Yeah."

"_This is the Master! No wonder they're like this,_" Lucy was dumbfounded.

"Wimps! Looks like I win this –" Sakura planted her fist in Natsu's face to shut him up.

Lucy made a squeak noise at the amount of violence Sakura showed to her brother and caught the attention of the Master.

"Oh? You new here?"

"Y-yes!"

"AHHHH!" a rush of wind and instead of looking at a hulking giant, Lucy now found herself staring at a rather short old man wearing what she thought to be an orange and blue clown costume.

"Nice to meet ya!" the Master waved at the confused blonde.

"Y-you're the master of Fairy Tail?"

"Yes. This Master Makarov, Fairy Tail's master!" Mirajane confirmed once again that Lucy was truly looking at the master of Fairy Tail.

Makarov turned and jumped onto the railing of the second floor before coughing to get everyone's attention, "You blasted brats have done it again! Look at all the paperwork the council sent me!" Makarov waved a hefty pile of paperwork around, "All complaints. All you guys do is get the council mad at me!" the guild hall remained quiet and Lucy looked nervous. If the Master was upset with the current members he may not let her join, "However… TO HELL WITH THE COUNCIL!" Makarov used magic to burn the stack with fire and threw the burning pages overhead which Natsu jumped up and caught, engulfing the flames, "Listen up! Power that has surpassed reason bears its roots within reason. Magic is not a miracle. It can only happen when the flow of energy within us and the flow of energy within the natural world perfectly synchronize. Magic comes from, nay your entire soul! Worry about those who watch from the sides and you'll make no progress. Don't let the fools on the council scare you! Follow your own path and believe in your own beliefs! That's what Fairy Tail mages do!"

0o0o0o0

"There you go! Now you're a Fairy Tail mage!" Mirajane removed the magical stamp from Lucy's right hand and a pink version of the guild emblem was left.

"Wow! I can't believe this is happening," Lucy was beside herself with joy. Finally, her dream was a reality.

"Well start believing because you're one of us now," Sakura smiled at Lucy's excitement. It'd been a while since a new guild member had joined.

"Thank you, Sakura. I was really nervous about coming here but I'm glad I did," Lucy smiled as she remembered Naruto's encouragement once more.

"Oh? And what kicked your rear hard enough to finally follow through with joining?" Sakura asked teasingly.

"Someone I met. He gave me the courage to believe in myself after something… horrible happened to me. I… don't know what I would've done had I not met him. This is the first time in my life that I've been on my own and doing things for myself and I let myself fall into such an obvious trap. I was ready to run home but he left me a message telling me not to let what happened determine the rest of my life," Lucy pulled her arms across her torso and did her best to keep her composure.

Sakura looked to the girl with sympathetic eyes. She knew what it was like to go through a horrible experience and feel like giving up on life, "Well I'm glad that you met that person. Otherwise we'd never have met. The men were beginning to outnumber us girls and we can't have that now can we? Who else is going to save these idiots, am I right Mira?"

"Sakura don't be so mean. It's not like any of them actually go seeking trouble," Mirajane laughed to herself at Sakura's indignant scoff as she cleaned some of the bar glass, "Well not all of them.

"Thank you," both Mirajane and Sakura were barely able to hear it but both smiled at Lucy's gratitude.

"There's no need to thank us. It may not seem like it, but everyone here has a past they'd rather forget. All of us, in one way or another, are broken. I think that's what truly makes Fairy Tail, well, Fairy Tail. It's not about making money, being famous, or even being the strongest. We're a bunch of broken pieces coming together to make a whole. A family," Mirajane spoke softly as she took hold of Lucy's hand to give reassurance to the younger girl, "You're our sister now whether you like it or not."

"_A family. I… thank you Naruto. Thank you for giving me the strength to come here_," Lucy smiled brightly at the warmth radiating off of Mirajane.

"When is my dad going to come back?" the young voice caught the girl's attention to look at the other end of the bar where Makarov was seated.

"You know you're beginning to get on my nerves Romeo. Your Father's a mage and can take care of himself. Just wait patiently for him," Makarov took another swig of the beer he was drinking.

"But Master he said he'd be back in 3 days and that was over a week ago!" Romeo scowled at Makarov's dismissal.

"If I remember correctly he took the job on Mt. Hakabe," Makarov scratched his chin in thought.

"That's right! It isn't that far from here, so why won't somebody go look for him?" Romeo stomped his foot in anger.

"Listen up brat! Your father's a mage and like every other mage in this guild he can take care of himself. Now, go home, have some snacks and wait!" Makarov flew backwards as the young boy punched him in the face.

"JERK!" Romeo ran out of the guild hall, tears flowing freely.

Lucy watched in silence as Romeo ran. Sensing Lucy's confliction about Makarov's treatment of the boy Mirajane spoke up, "I know it seems like Master is being unfair but he really does care."

Everyone suddenly looked at the Mission Request Board at a loud cracking noise, "Natsu! What the hell are you doing?" Sakura yelled as the pink-haired boy removed his fist from the board, picking up his camping supplies and walked out with his blue cat, Happy, ignoring Sakura completely, "Huh, what am I going to do with that idiot?" Sakura sighed to herself as she went back to her drink.

Makarov remained silent as an older guild member addressed him, "Looks like Natsu is going after Macao to save him from Mt. Hakabe. He's just going to hurt Macao's pride in the end."

"Remember Nab, every mage chooses his own road. There's nothing we can do except hope Natsu is successful in retrieving Macao," Makarov watched Natsu's retreating form keenly.

"Why is Natsu so upset?" Lucy asked, not knowing just what she was asking.

"Natsu and I aren't actually siblings," Lucy turned to Sakura, a little surprised.

"But I thought…" Lucy let her question die on her tongue at the look in Sakura's eyes.

"The two of us are orphans. My parents were both killed when I was very little and Natsu never knew his actual parents. From what he can remember he just drifted through the wilderness until one day a dragon found him and took him in as his son," Lucy's eyes bulged at the outrageous statement, "Don't give me that look, I know what I said. Igneel was the only parent Natsu ever knew. He taught him culture, language, and magic. Then one day he disappeared, leaving Natsu all alone once again. He searched everywhere for Igneel but couldn't in the end. Natsu swore to one day find Igneel and set off into the world. I was the first person Natsu had ever met and thought we were siblings because of our hair. I was 13 then and already on my way to join the guild and brought him with me. I never told him to beat it or that I wasn't actually his sister. I just accepted him. I had been alone for a while and needed someone just as much as he did," Sakura smiled bitterly at the memories flooding her head.

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents. My mother died when I was a little girl and my father buried himself in his work to escape his grief, leaving me to take care of myself. I don't have any siblings and never really had friends so I guess I can understand just a little bit how the two of you must've felt," a silence fell over the three girls.

Lucy suddenly stood, a determined look in her eyes glowed brightly, "Right! I'll see all of you later!"

"Oh? Where are you going suddenly?" Sakura asked surprised at Lucy's sudden eagerness.

Smiling brightly Lucy answered, "To go help Natsu rescue Macao!"

In the weeks to follow, Fairy Tail would see the rise of one of its strongest teams. A team that consisted of a Knight, an Ice-Make mage, a blue cat, a Dragonslayer, and a Celestial Mage named Lucy.

0o0 3 Weeks Later – Guild Master Meeting 0o0

"Makarov, tell me you've heard the awful rumors too!" Bob, guild master to Blue Pegasus, asked the aging mage and guild master of Fairy Tail at the annual Guild Master Conference.

"Bob there are numerous rumors that circulate all the time. You'll have to be more specific," Makarov said not looking up from his latest edition of Sorcerer's magazine and shamelessly ogling his barmaid, Mirajane, who had once again done a swimsuit shoot.

"He's talking about the incident that took place 3 weeks ago in Hargeon," Goldmine, the guild mast of Quatro Cerberus, turned from one of the dining tables with a shish kabob in hand, "As well as the numerous sightings of a mage wearing a black hooded coat with red clouds on it. Some are calling this rogue mage's sudden appearance as a sign to the end of days. Even going as far as to claim the ghosts of Shadow Heart are returning for revenge."

"Oh no!" Bob, and most of the other guild masters who merely flinched at the mentioning of the dark guild, shook his head and cowered beneath a table, afraid that a ghost of the now dead guild would appear.

"Shadow Heart," Makarov stroked one side of his moustache and sighed, his heart deepening as memories of a blonde haired man returned after 13 years of being buried, "A new mage in my guild, Lucy, was at Hargeon when that massacre occurred," all eyes turned to the short mage, intent on knowing what happened from a first-eye account, "She told us that though she couldn't remember what happened well, she is thankful to that rogue mage who wears a symbol of Shadow Heart," this caused many eyebrows to rise in questioning.

"She had been captured by, Bora of the Prominence," many eyes turned toward to the guild master of Titan Nose briefly, "And had it not been for that mage she would now be a slave in a foreign land being forced to do only Lord knows what. Even though he killed those men that night, we must also think of the countless number of lives he saved from suffering a fate worse than death and question if we would not do the same in his position!"

"That doesn't mean he can be judge, jury, and executioner Makarov. I read the reports on what fate dealt those men that night and many of them experienced what could only be hell before death embraced them. Just thinking about what he did makes me sick to my stomach," Goldmine clenched his fist, "Mages alone cannot decide how others must die. Everyone deserves a chance to a fair trial before final judgment is cast."

"Could you have stood idly by and watched young women be raped in front of you, Goldmine?" Makarov asked solemnly.

"What!? Of course not! I would do anything I could to save them! How dare you accuse me of cowardice!" Goldmine yelled.

"Bora has been apprehended multiple times on charges of attempted rape and showed no signs of changing his ways, which is why I personally helped in his capture. How he escaped prison is unknown to me but I know, had this man not killed him, I would have out of shame and sorrow that my guild once held such a member!" Gardenia Bluenose, guild master of Titan Nose, said solemnly, "I cannot even imagine the pain that his victims are still feeling to this day. I can only hope that they find peace in knowing he will harm no one else."

"Gardenia! To say such a thing! Despite his crimes, Bora was still a human and deserved a fair chance. Don't tell me you're siding with a murderer," Goldmine couldn't believe another guild master was ok with the murder of a little more than a hundred murders.

"You know nothing Goldmine! Such ignorance is why men like Bora continue to get away with their crimes. Bora had plenty of chances to change and didn't. I feel no pity or remorse other than it wasn't me who did him in," Gardenia seethed as thoughts of what her former guild member had done.

"I can't believe this!" Goldmine looked scandalized.

"Tell me Goldmine, how far would you go for your guild to protect those in it?" Makarov spoke with an intense stare.

"As far as I could and more!"

"Then perhaps this young man is doing the same for the people of Fiore. Going as far as he must to protect his home from evil doers like Bora. Even if he becomes the villain, hated wherever he goes, and showered in the blood of his enemies, it is a price he has chosen to pay to ensure the peace that is revered in this Kingdom," there was no further argument from Goldmine, who now seemed too conflicted to continue.

Finally the crowd that had gathered dispersed and a somewhat version of normalcy returned to the conference.

"Who in your guild was a shinobi?" Gardenia asked quietly as she took up a seat at the table Makarov had made his own.

"His name was Namikaze Minato and he was the best mage I ever watched grow under my care," Makarov whispered back.

"My father and my uncle. They died during that hellish week trying to reach the main guild," a lone tear fell.

"My condolences young one."

"What for? They died an honorable death in the defense of Fiore and their ancestry. Arigato for understanding Makarov-dono," Gardenia bowed her head before getting up and leaving the old man to his thoughts, any trace of sorrow gone from her face with practiced ease.

0o0o0o0

"Uzumaki Naruto, you have a lot of nerve showing your face around here after all this time," Tayuya glared at a corner of shadow filling the Stripper club she owned. It was the middle of the day, the one time that the club was actually empty and she could relax before all the perverts rushed in to try to get a little too friendly with her girls.

"Tayuya, it's been a long time," Naruto stepped out of his hiding place, his black cloak encompassing his body and hood up, "How's life been?"

"Long time is a few months, Uzumaki. You've been gone 5 years. And cut the crap. You ninja types aren't exactly the type to care about how others have been. You and emotion just don't mix," Tayuya walked back behind the bar and poured herself a shot before downing it, "So what do you want?"

Naruto's tone fell flat as he spoke, "I need to know everything that I've missed since I left. _He_ wouldn't have let his spy network go to shit just because I went to train. Political plays, which guilds are at the top, rumors, all the usual info you can give me. Payment will be made the usual way."

"As of late all those bastards in the Mage Council have been rather quiet, simply regulating the guilds like they're supposed too and all the King and his bumbling fools of advisors haven't been doing much besides raising taxes. Guild positions are the same, the morons of Fairy Tail being as destructive as they can be. To be honest everything has been too quiet. Which means someone somewhere is plotting something but is being careful. You, on the other hand, caused quite the stir with that stunt in Hargeon. Everyone's scared that the shadowy Death God's of Shadow Heart have returned to exact vengeance," Tayuya chuckled at all the buzz about the massacre the blond had started.

"What about _them_?" Tayuya rolled her eyes.

"Nothing. The one's that did in your guild are ghosts by now, you should let go of the past already," Tayuya was met with silence, "Don't give me the cold shoulder. Whoever was behind the curtains were good."

Several moments passed before Naruto spoke once more, "What about rumors? Anything interesting?"

"Hmm? You know now that I think about it, I did hear an interesting rumor involving one of those ancient items that were cursed by that Zeref guy," Tayuya smirked to herself the moment she said Zeref. If there was one way to get the utmost attention from a ninja, it was mentioning the mother of all evil mages.

"I'm listening."

"So what do you know about Lullaby?"

0o0o0o0

"I assume you've all heard the rumors."

"We'd have to live under a rock to not."

"I thought we killed them all!"

"It was never clear that we did and the possibility of a few escaping into the shadows was always a possibility."

"We must order a hunt for this man! He's already evaded several border patrols and made a fool of my strongest magic sealer!"

"Don't be so hasty or we'll play right into his hands. There's always more than meets the eye when it comes to ninja, wouldn't you agree?"

"I can kill this imposter before he knew he was dead."

"I find this all rather exciting. Here I thought this was all too easy and conquering this pathetic land would be boring. After all, Shadow Heart kept as at bay for nearly a century before we finally turned the very country they cared so much for on them. I think having an opponent that can put up a fight will be entertaining while we put the finishing touches to our plan."

"He'll be dangerous. For now we'll observe his movements and see what it is he wants."

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Till next time,

The Revolutionary Ronin


	3. Prologue: Crisis! The Strongest Team?

Disclaimer – I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail

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By Any Means

Chapter 3 – Crisis! The Strongest Team?

Soundtrack – Kanzen Kankaku Dreamer by One Ok Rock

0o0o0o0

Fiore, a neutral kingdom of 17 million, is a world filled with magic. Magic is the people's source of income, both bartering and selling and using the mystical arts to make a living. These people became known as Mages and belonged to guilds that accepted jobs sent to them.

Long ago there existed a guild that fought outside the law in order to preserve it. This guild produced numerous legends that became infamous in history. They dirtied their hands in blood to protect the peace of Fiore. This guild was known as Shadow Heart, a dark guild.

0o0 10 Years Ago 0o0

"_Sensei!" a young blond haired child called out in the vast blackness of the cave. Blood ran down his body like a river. Numerous kunai and shuriken stuck out of his body._

_Another kunai whirled through the air, the boy dodged just in time to save his jugular from being punctured. _

"_You must remain silent. Do not allow even your breath to give you away," this time a flurry of shuriken aimed to end the boy's life. _

_Azure eyes opened in a flash and the collision of metal meeting metal could be heard. Moving to a new position, the boy clenched his teeth to silence his breathing. Closing his eyes once more the child concentrated in order to locate his target. He focused his mind to expand his remaining senses, chakra flowing rapidly through his tiny form._

"_There!" the boy jumped and twisted his body in the air to generate more momentum for the kunai in his hand._

_Metal piercing flesh resounded throughout the cave._

_The boy tensed as a blade rested against his neck, blood flowing from his neck._

"_I told you to never let your guard down until you know for sure your enemy is dead. You are shinobi," the voice was directly behind him, "This is enough for today."_

_The blade was removed from the child's neck and the boy turned in time to see spinning red eyes turn back to their normal black abyss._

"_Sensei," the retreating form stopped mid-step._

"…"

"_Am I strong?"_

"_No."_

"_When will I be? We've been training for 3 years! When will I be strong enough!?" unwanted tears swelled beneath the azure irises. _

"_Naruto, do you have something worth dying for?"_

"_Of course I do! I have my revenge! I want to kill the bastards who killed my family! I want to avenge our guild, even if it kills me!"_

"_You misunderstand me. And until you do, you will never be strong enough."_

0o0 Present Day 0o0

"Looking for a new job Lucy?" Sakura asked the blonde, as she plucked a new job off the Job Board.

"Yes, but I can't decide on a good one," Lucy kept scanning the board for a job that suited her, as well as covered her rent with a little left over to spend on clothing and food, "I have rent coming up soon."

"Well make sure to pick one soon. Happy and I can't wait to go on a new adventure!" Natsu called from the latest crater Sakura had plowed him into.

"Eh? Our team is officially disbanded after that last one! You only chose me because I'm a blonde!" Lucy yelled at the pink haired teen.

"That's not the only reason," Natsu dusted off his white khakis and smiled sweetly at her, "We chose you because you're also really nice!"

Lucy could only give an exasperated look to the Dragonslayer.

"Make sure to tell me which job you choose as well Lucy. Master has gone to the annual Guild Master Conference so I'm in charge of keeping track of everyone's missions until he returns," Mira smiled from behind the bar as she informed the newcomer on the current procedure.

"Mira, I'll be going on this one with my usual team. They're already waiting for me outside the town," Sakura handed over the mission request and Mira pulled out the mission log to jot down who was taking care of the specified mission.

"Have a safe trip Sakura. Tell Tenten I said hello," Mira gave a smile, "And make sure to tell Sasuke not to be such a stranger. It's been a while since he's _graced_ us with his presence," the mock sarcasm was evidence enough of Mirajane's relationship with the mage.

"I'll be sure to let him know his girlfriend is still pissed with him. Later!" Sakura turned only for Natsu to stand in her way.

"Sis, let me come with you! I want to challenge Sasuke to a fight!" flames engulfed Natsu's body to show his excitement.

"The last time you and Sasuke went at it, you couldn't move for a month firehead. I'm late as it is and I'm not in the mood to wait for you to pack. I'll be sure to let Sasuke know you wish to fight him but I'll doubt he'll take you seriously. I should return in 3 weeks so for the love of everything holy in this world, stay out of trouble. I don't want to find out you've been arrested for property damage again or there will be dire consequences. Got it?" Sakura eyed her little brother with a sharp expression.

"Yeah, yeah I get it. No having fun," Natsu winced waiting for the punch but it never came.

"Have fun idiot," Sakura hugged him and went off to meet up with her team.

Lucy watched in awe at the sibling's exchange of endearment, wishing she had grown up with someone like Sakura. The pink-haired woman was violent but also caring. In her three weeks of being at Fairy Tail, Lucy had learned that nothing was more important than the bonds each mage had with each other in the guild.

So far she had gone on two missions, one was a rescue mission in which she, Natsu, and Happy had rescued Macao, Romeo's father, from a monster known as a Vulcan which can overtake their victims and control their bodies. The Vulcan turned out to be a huge pervert and had kidnapped her in order to mate with her. Luckily her Celestial Spirit Taurus, also a major pervert, and Natsu were able to save her and set Macao free.

The next mission was to Mansion Everlue which was looking to hire a blond maid. Natsu and Happy had tricked her into partaking in the mission as she was the only blond at the guild at the time. When she applied for the job she was turned down because the master of the mansion, Duke Everlue, didn't find her attractive enough. The real mission however was an item retrieval. A wealthy man was looking to have a book destroyed called _Daybreak_ and the reward was more than enough to keep Lucy a float for quite some time. However, after breaking into the Mansion and locating the book, Lucy learned that the book was a letter addressed to the Author's son who was also the employer of the mission. Upon learning why the book was written Lucy and Natsu took down Duke Everlue and exposed the heartless monster that he is. Lucy and Natsu returned the book intact to their employer and showed him the hidden message within the book and the true title _Dear Kaby_.

"So Master went to a conference?" Lucy pulled herself out of her self induced reflections of the last few weeks and turned to Mirajane who was happily cleaning a few mugs.

"Hmm? Oh yes. It takes place every so often so that any policy changes made by the Council can be passed to the Guild Masters as well as any changes that the Masters wish to address or debate on can be done in a peaceful manner. Their motions or concerns are then passed to the Council who make the final decision. The Council is made up of 10 mages and has connections to every government in the world. They are the absolute when it comes to terms of judicial enforcement for mages. They ensure that wars aren't started by mages going on missions in other countries. Especially countries like the warring state of Bosco. Beneath them are all the governments and their individual countries. From there each country is split into three factions. Their normal military force, their magical military force, and the free guilds such as Fairy Tail. Both military forces answer to the government of their country and any militarized mage is exempt from Council ruling as his/her actions are regulated by another entity. The free guilds answer first to the Council and the government second although the line tends to blend at times. It's hard to tell who is who and just which entity is truly in control," Lucy nodded as she took in the new knowledge handed to her.

"I never knew that all the guilds were so interconnected like that," Lucy pondered over everything Mira had just informed her with.

"Yes, it's very important for the guilds to communicate. If a guild doesn't focus on cooperation…"

"The men in black will get you!" Natsu had snuck up behind Lucy and made her jump out of her skin. Natsu proceeded to laugh at her expense, "Hahaha, you're such a scaredy cat!"

"Natsu!" Lucy screamed at the laughing teen, "Don't scare me like that!" She glared hard at him, "_How can he be so immature with someone like Sakura for a sister? Just when I begin to feel symphony for the guy he does something like this. Definitely off my boyfriend list, which reminds me I need to talk to Mira about what Sakura said about the _Sasuke Uchiha_ being her boyfriend. That is something which Sorcerer magazine hasn't talked about."_

"Natsu isn't too off the mark though," Mirajane brought Lucy back to the present, "There's a fourth faction that most countries have called Dark Guilds."

"Dark Guilds?" Lucy gave Mira a stunned look.

"They are guilds that take missions like assassination and espionage. They ignore the order to disband and continue operating in the black market, selling their magical abilities to commit crimes," Lucy once again absorbed the information.

"So you mean like Shadow Heart?" Lucy could vividly see the black hooded figure standing in front of her. The red clouds foreshadowing what would rain from them. She shook at the memory.

"Yes. Like Shadow Heart. Though we don't have to worry about them any longer do we?" Lucy was too lost in memory to notice the sadness that suddenly overtook Mira's tone. Though of course she quickly recovered and smiled once more.

"Neh, Lucy! Hurry up and pick a job! I'm bored," Happy came over to share his displeasure of not having something fun to do.

"I already told Natsu that our team is disbanded!" Lucy was more than happy, ignoring the pun, to crush that cat's hopes of doing anything "fun" around her.

"Ignore them! I'm sure you'll get a ton of offers soon enough. I know I'd rather team up with someone else. You shouldn't be roped into a team with a hot head like Natsu," Gray called out from his seat next to Cana, in his briefs.

"Gray, clothes," Cana casually drunk her beer as she pointed out that Gray was close to streaking, not that there was anything anyone had not already seen due to the ice-mage's bizarre habit.

"Gyah!" Gray grumbled as he realized he had once again stripped down to almost nothing.

"You're annoying," Natsu glared at his rival, angry that Gray was saying stupid things again.

"What'd you just call me fire freak?" Gray stormed over to the Dragonslayer and butted their head together, sparks surrounding them as they prepared to fight once more.

"Super annoying you pervert!"

"Feather face!"

Silky hair!"

"You're stifling!'

"You stink!"

"There they go again…" Happy casually pointed out as he took a swig of milk that Mira had gotten for him.

While Gray and Natsu went for each other's throats, Loke had confidently walked up to Lucy as soon as he heard she was available for a team, "Lucy, won't you form a team of love with me? Tonight just the two of us?"

Lucy didn't know how to respond, "Huh?"

"You really are beautiful. Even with my sunglasses on, your beauty is dazzling. I'm sure I would go blind if I saw you with my naked eyes," Loke couldn't even believe Lucy's next words to him.

"Go blind. Fine by me," Lucy wasn't in the mood to be hit on by a guy that went after every girl he saw. She knew a loser just like that back in her hometown named Barney. Why her ex-friend Robin liked the guy was beyond her.

Lucy moved ever so slightly and her Celestial keys glinted, catching Loke's eye, "Y-You're a Celestial Mage?!"

"What?" Lucy had to lift her eyebrow at that one, "_What is he so scared of?_"

"Yep! She has a cow and crab and stuff," Happy butted in, now munching on a fish he'd found just lying around on someone's plate.

"AHHH! What a cruel twist of fate! I'm sorry! We can never be together!" Loke then turned and ran out of the guild hall, leaving behind a very confused Lucy.

"What's his deal?"

"Loke has trouble dealing with Celestial Mages. Rumor is that he had trouble with a girl a long time ago," Mira had walked from behind the counter and grabbed Happy by the scruff of his neck before flipping him over and shaking him violently until money fell from his green sack and onto the bar counter. She then promptly dropped Happy on top of the fish he'd stolen and took his money to pay for the meal.

And just as fast as he'd run off, Loke stormed back in, "THIS IS BAD!" Everyone stopped to look at the man, "Erza's back."

"EH!" everyone donned looks of fear and fright save Mirajane and Lucy, who didn't know who Erza was.

Lucy turned to Mira, "Who's Erza?"

"Hmm? Oh, Erza's a jealous cunt," Lucy's jaw had dropped.

"Excuse me?" Lucy couldn't believe what Mirajane, possibly one of the most innocent and most kind hearted person she'd ever met, had just said.

"I said she's Fairy Tail's strongest mage silly!" Mirajane didn't even acknowledge her previous statement, "You've most likely heard of the nickname given to her: Titania, Queen of the Fairies."

"Wait, you mean _the_ Titania? She was voted "Sexiest Mage" last year by Sorcerer magazine as well as "The Female Mage You Don't Want to Piss Off"!" Lucy remained oblivious to the giant tick mark marring Mirajane's forehead when she mentioned the results for Sorcerer magazine's "Sexiest Mage" contest the previous year.

"_The bitch didn't even enter!_" Mirajane screamed in her head at the "bogus" results, "That would be Erza alright," She gave an indignant smile.

Heavy footsteps were suddenly heard and a long shadow extended into the hall as Erza finally returned after a month away.

To say Lucy was scared would be an understatement.

Erza entered with an air that screamed "I dare you to fuck with me." Upon her shoulders was a massive decorated horn that must have belonged to some kind of monster at some point. She wore a coat of arms with the Fairy Tail guild mark on it, a blue skirt and knee high black boots. Her hair was possibly the most scarlet shade of red Lucy had ever seen and her chocolate brown eyes were sharp to look at directly. Her skin was fare and without any blemishes. All in all the woman was just as beautiful as Mirajane, though in her opinion Mirajane had more feminine features. Of course it was hard to judge with Erza's armor on.

Erza set the horn down, shaking the very foundations of the Guild, "I've returned. Is Master here?"

"Welcome back! Master is at the usual conference," Mira smiled at her enemy, ally at the current moment.

"I see," Erza nodded and turned to one of the guild members when a question was thrown her way.

"Erza, what is that humongous thing?"

"The horn of a monster I subdued. The village in the surrounding area decorated it and gave it to me as a gift of gratitude. I thought it would look nicely in the guild hall," Erza then shot a glare at the one who asked the question, "Is it a problem?"

"No, not in the least!" nearly everyone responded.

Everyone began to whisper to one another about who Erza would chew out this time. Nearly everyone chose Natsu and Gray along with a few others who had done more property damage than was necessary.

"Listen up! On the road I heard Fairy Tail has yet again caused more trouble," the red head placed her hands on her hips in the way mothers do when scolding children, "The Master may not care, but I do! Cana!" the drunkard tensed and moved the giant barrel she'd been drinking from her lips, "How dare you drink while dressed like that. Vijeeter, dance outside! Wakaba. I see cigarette butts on the floor. Nab. I see you're dawdling in front of the request board as usual. Do some work! Macao," Erza merely sighed at the sight of the man.

"Say something!" Macao, could handle being yelled at but that was cruel.

"Honestly, you cause so much trouble. But I'll be kind and say nothing today," Erza facepalmed and shook her head in disappointment.

"She's already said a lot, though…" Lucy whispered to Mirajane, hoping not to garner Erza's attention, "What is she, a disciplinarian?"

"That's Erza for you!" Happy once more included himself in Lucy's conversation.

"Still, even if she is kind of a loudmouth, she looks like an actually-mature person. Reminds me a lot of Sakura," Lucy continued trying to figure out just what kind of person Erza is, "Surely there's no reason to be so afraid of her?"

"Mira," Erza called to the barmaid.

"Yes?"

"Has Sasuke returned yet?"

"He left for a mission with his usual team a half-hour ago," Mirajane informed.

"I see. Then I guess it'll just be Natsu, Gray and I. Are those two here?" Erza looked around until she spotted the two hugging each other and shaking hands.

"Aye!" Happy happily confirmed that both mages were indeed there.

"Y-yo, Erza. We're good pals as usual!" Gray stuttered out nervously.

"Aye!" Natsu copied Happy's trademark catchphrase, high-pitched voice included.

"Did… Natsu turn into Happy?" Lucy whispered more to herself than to anyone else.

"That's good. Though it's natural for friends to fight sometime as well, I'm glad to see the two of you getting along," Erza nodded her head, "_Those two really think I'm that stupid don't they? At least they get along when I'm around rather than trying to kill each other._"

"No, we're not exactly good friends," Gray whispered under his breath to which Natsu replied with his own whispered "Aye!"

"I haven't seen Natsu act like this before," Lucy was shocked. Just with her presence, Erza was able to turn the hot headed Natsu into a frightened and shivering child. It was completely out of character for the pink head.

"A long time ago, Natsu challenged Erza to a fight and got beat up pretty badly. Even though Sakura constantly hits him she never puts her all into it. Erza on the other hand has never heard of the word constraint," Mirajane had taken to doodling in the air with a lightpen she had borrowed earlier when she was explaining how guilds work to Lucy, "She did the same to Gray when she caught him walking around naked and Loke when he tried hitting on her."

"Natsu. Gray. I have a favor to ask. I was hoping to borrow Sasuke for this from Team Fairy Shadow but it seems I missed my opportunity. I heard about something bad while on my last mission. Normally, I would consult Master about something like this first, but there isn't time to sit and wait. I want your help. Will you come with me?" both Gray and Natsu looked to one another.

"Go on a mission with him?" Both mages spoke at the same time.

The whispers began to spread throughout the hall.

"Erza's asking for help?"

"That's a first."

"What in the world!"

"We leave in an hour. Prepare yourselves for a tough fight," Erza turned and left to get her things ready.

"Erza, Natsu, and Gray… I never even imagined it before but if they team together they could possibly be one of the strongest teams Fairy Tail has ever seen," Mirajane said causing Lucy to look shocked.

0o0 Magnolia Station 0o0

Azure eyes scanned the station platform from their seated position aboard the train headed for Oshibana. It had been over a decade since he'd last seen the humble town that played host to Fairy Tail and he had no desire to see the Guild or any of its mages. The train had been parked for 10 minutes already and within those 10 minutes Naruto had become very bored.

"_I knew I should've brought something to pass the time. Maybe I can con some poor sap at a game of poker? If only there was ramen on this train_," sighing, Naruto closed his eyes and then reopened them at the sound of two men starting a fight just outside his train car.

"Why do I have to team up with you?!" a fiery youth with pink hair and clothing fit for the hot sands of Bosco screamed at the top of his lungs at a more apathetic looking teen in a white trench coat and. Sitting next to them on one of the station's benches sat a blonde haired woman holding a shivering Plu spirit along with a blue cat.

"_Isn't that…?_" Naruto knew he'd seen the woman somewhere before.

"You think I like this anymore than you? Tch, if Erza needs help, I'm more than enough by myself!" the trench coat teen argued back.

It was like watching Fire and Ice butting heads.

"Then you go by yourself! I didn't even want to go!"

"Don't come then! Let Erza beat you senseless later!"

"I don't know them. I don't know them," the blonde girl looked everywhere but at the two. Although it was hard not to notice the pink Fairy Tail mark on her hand that matched the Pink head's mark on his shoulder.

"_So she joined after all,_" Naruto couldn't help but smirk at the sight of the girl he'd saved from Bora in Hargeon.

"Why are _you_ here, Lucy?" the blue cat asked chomping on a fish he'd found at one of the markets on the way to the station.

"It's because of Mira. She asked me to make sure Natsu and Gray don't fight in front of Erza," Lucy lowered her head in embarrassment.

"You _aren't_ stopping them, though."

"I know, but…"

Both Gray and Natsu were just growling at each other now, "I'm sorry. Did I keep you waiting?"

At the sound of the new comer Naruto lazily shifted his gaze to a red-haired woman in a full coat of arms. The Fairy Tail emblem embroidered upon the chest, a blue skirt, and knee high black boots. She had soft brown eyes and a no-games type of look about her.

"_Why… does she look so familiar?_" Naruto couldn't place it but he'd met this woman before.

A searing pain shot through him and Naruto clutched at his chest, "_The hell?! Is she doing this to me?_" Naruto shot a look back to the red-head and couldn't sense any chakra or even magic exuding from her. And just as quick as it came, the pain vanished.

"_Save me! Naruto!_" the voice was a distant echo, but Naruto knew he'd heard someone cry out for him.

Sweat poured down his brow as he looked around for the source of the plea for help. But no one seemed to be panicking or concerned.

Shaking his head roughly Naruto put the odd occurrence aside and looked back to the Fairy Tail mages and barely saw them board the train he was on.

"_No such thing as coincidence,_" getting up, Naruto donned his usual apathetic look and vanished from sight.

000 To be Continued 000

I know, I know. Why isn't the full Lullaby arc posted? Well for starters I have to go and sweep through the original chapters I posted and change accordingly to what I have written here and that's going to take me a little while. I also wanted to get something put out for all of you since it has been a while.

I do plan, to be done with this arc and move onto an arc focused solely on Naruto rather than the Lyon arc that comes next (I can't remember the name of the demon. It's on the tip of my tongue. Deloria or something like that.). And don't forget to check my blog for review responses, spoilers, updates, and random vids.


	4. Prologue: Shadows of the Past

Disclaimer – I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail

0000000

By Any Means

Chapter 4 – Shadows of the Past

Soundtrack – Kanzen Kankaku Dreamer by One Ok Rock

0o0o0o0

Fiore, a neutral kingdom of 17 million, is a world filled with magic. Magic is the people's source of income, both bartering and selling and using the mystical arts to make a living. These people became known as Mages and belonged to guilds that accepted jobs sent to them.

Long ago there existed a guild that fought outside the law in order to preserve it. This guild produced numerous legends that became infamous in history. They dirtied their hands in blood to protect the peace of Fiore. This guild was known as Shadow Heart, a dark guild.

0o0o0o0

"_You'll always protect me, won't you?_"

Naruto couldn't help but stare at the crimson haired beauty. How long had it been? Nearly 11 years since he'd last saw her. 11 pain filled years of never knowing if she'd escaped or not. 11 years since his greatest failure as a shinobi.

But now was not the time to rekindle his past. He had a job to do and he couldn't afford to let his emotions affect him now. Lives were at stake.

The four Fairy Tail mages and cat remained oblivious to their silent observer who had relocated across from them just as the Train had begun its next journey across Fiore.

"I saw you at the Guild earlier, did I not?" Erza asked the blond currently sitting next to her.

"Mm. I just recently joined not long ago. It's a pleasure to meet you Erza!" Lucy sucked in her fear of the other woman and put up a brave front, "Mirajane asked me to come along."

"I see. I'm sure if Mira approves of your abilities you will be an excellent addition to the team."

"Erza," Gray pulled all attention towards him, "I think it's time you told us what this is all about. It's not like you to return suddenly and seek help with something. Whatever you heard about must be completely above your head if you need _our_ help," he indignantly pointed his thumb at Natsu, who was experiencing severe motion sickness.

"You're right, as much as I hate to admit it, but this mission goes beyond my capabilities," Gray's, Lucy's, and Happy's eyes widened at the declaration, "We'll be facing off against a dark guild, Eisenwald."

"What?!" Lucy had already experienced a member of a dark guild once and she'd rather forget that ordeal. Now she was going to go up against a full dark guild? "You're positive about this? Are you sure you didn't misunderstand?"

"No," Lucy flinched at the tone, "Eisenwald is planning to use a magic called Lullaby for something."

"Lullaby?!" all save for Natsu said it at the same time, Gray and Lucy looking at each other with concern.

"You've heard of it?" Erza asked.

"Yes. A few days ago when Natsu, Lucy, and Happy were returning to the guild from a job I ran into them making my own way back. On the way we ran into a trio of dark mages who wanted to kidnap Happy as a snack. Before we beat them, we overheard them talking about "Lullaby" and how risky it was to even think about it. After we had captured them a shadow appeared and took them before we could get any more out of them," Gray divulged, which only caused Erza to look more concerned.

"They must've been a part of Eisenwald and didn't agree with whatever they are planning. Did they say anything else?"

"They said a name. More like begged when the shadow was taking them. Probably the one that was casting it."

"Who?"

"Shikamaru."

Naruto's world froze in that instance, "_He's alive? Tch, that lazy genius is going to make this more troublesome. This just got more complicated. Damn it Tayuya. You didn't tell me it was a shinobi going after Lullaby. He probably has it already._"

"He was the one that I overheard talking about Lullaby. It was on my way back from my previous mission. I stopped at a pub in Onibas. It's popular among wizards and thought it would be a good place to pick up some rumors. Inside a rowdy bunch were mouthing off about obtaining a "Lullaby" and how they were going to make someone pay. Apparently they were having trouble with some sort of seal. The one named Shikamaru assured the others he would take care of it and told them to return to their guild. He then left telling the others to tell an Erigor he wouldn't be long. At the time I didn't recognize the name but Erigor is the name of Eisenwald's guild master," Erza grit her teeth, "Had I remembered then I would've taken care of them then and there. Now they have a day's head start."

"Lullaby… I wonder if they mean like a nursery rhyme," Lucy pondered aloud.

"Perhaps. The fact that it's sealed away means that its' dangerous. All the more so if a man like Erigor is after it. He has built his reputation by taking assassination-related jobs and was donned the Wind Reaper," Lucy felt like jumping out of the train.

"Erigor is the least of your problems," the group of Fairy Tail mages immediately looked to their left to see a blond-haired man looking out the train car's window with a bored expression. He wore black pants that went it into white bandaging and black sandals. His black and orange jacket was open to reveal the black shirt he wore beneath it and an emerald necklace the glinted. On his cheeks, 3 whisker like scars marred both sides of his otherwise flawless face. Turning his attention to the group he gave a bright smile as Lucy instantly recognized his azure eyes, "It's been a while, hasn't it Lucy-san?"

"Naruto!" Lucy couldn't believe it. The man who had kept her going and gave her the strength and courage to join Fairy Tail had been sitting across from her the whole time.

Erza was seeing, but she wasn't believing, "_Is… is it really him? Or is this merely coincidence?_"

"Who are you?" Gray was the only one to keep his cool.

"Ah, it's impolite to ask someone's name without giving your own first," Gray could tell already he wouldn't like this guy.

"His name is Naruto Namikaze. He and I… we lived in the same village long ago," Erza locked eyes with Naruto.

The two simply stared at one another. An uncomfortable silence fell over the group, the only sounds was the train's thundering rolling and Natsu's grunts of agony.

"Uzumaki."

"Huh?" Erza blinked at him finally breaking their staring contest.

"My name. I go by Uzumaki Naruto now. I haven't been Namikaze for a long time."

"I see. Forgive me for my mistake then Mr. Uzumaki."

Naruto knew he deserved the tone she was giving him. How couldn't he? Not after what happened.

"Don't worry about it," It was clear to Lucy that there was a history between the two.

"You said we had bigger problems than just Erigor," Gray spoke with mirth. It was obvious that this Naruto was causing Erza pain with his presence. Afraid of her he might be, but Erza was still his friend and nobody hurt his friends.

"Yeah. Erigor is the tip of the iceberg. I doubt even he realizes just what it is he's getting himself into," Naruto leaned back in his seat and sighed.

"What do you mean?" Lucy was the one to ask.

"Ever hear of Zereff?"

"Who hasn't? He's known as the Black Mage that almost wiped out all life around 400 years ago. How does he fit into all this?" Gray couldn't believe they were talking about a guy that has been dead for four centuries.

"Lullaby was a once a beautiful flute. Many would gather from across the world to hear it played. Zereff got a hold of it and twisted it so that any who hear its song played die," Gray suddenly understood why they were talking about Zereff.

"So they plan to use Lullaby in order to kill somebody," Erza began racing through potential targets, "The question is who?"

"They're a dark guild. It could be a hit, it could be them acting on their own. However, there are a number of events occurring today. The most prominent being the Oshibana Festival taking place in Oshibana. Thousands are going to be there. Not only that but they have one of the most advanced speaker system in all of Fiore."

"You sound like you've given this some thought," Gray eyed Naruto suspiciously, "You already know about Eisenwald's plan."

The statement caused Lucy, Erza, and Happy to look at the blonde with the same suspicion.

"Sort of. All I really knew before I overheard you guys was that someone was plotting to steal Lullaby. I've been thinking about the potential targets and Oshibana meets all the requirements of a blow against Fiore government and the Council: Lots of people and a way to amplify the flute. But then you mentioned someone I thought had died a long time ago," once more the Fairy Tail mages were giving the blonde their full attention.

"Nara Shikamaru. He's lazy, hates working, and believes doing anything is too troublesome to bother doing," Naruto remembered the numerous days he'd spent cloud watching with Shikamaru.

"If this Nara Shikamaru is as you say he is, then why is he in leagues with Eisenwald?" Erza asked not sure of what to make of the new information she'd just been told, "Let alone make you doubt that Oshibana is being targeted?"

"Because his IQ exceeds 200. If Shikamaru is involved then he wouldn't target nameless thousands. Not when he can make a point."

"And what would his point be?"

"Justice."

"Justice?" Erza stared at him incredulously.

"Allow me to rephrase: Revenge. If he's returned to Fiore, he's here for revenge. Which means his target is the entire Fiore infrastructure. And currently…" Naruto trailed off sinking into his thoughts, "I know his target."

0o0 Kunugi Station 0o0

"Halt! What is the meaning of this!" the train conductor felt searing pain for a brief moment and then nothing as his head fell off his shoulders and his body slumped to the ground.

"This train now belongs to Eisenwald! If you don't want to end up like my friend," at that Erigor pointed to the lifeless corpse of the conductor, "Then I suggest running. Hahahahahahahaha!"

The other mages of Eisenwald began to laugh as well at the sight of the fleeing civilians. They began to laugh even harder when they noticed the Kunugi security officers were ahead of everyone else.

"Do you always have to be this troublesome, Erigor?" Shikamaru stepped off the train and shook his head at the sight of the dead conductor, "I need a smoke," popping out a cigarette and lighter, Shikamaru inhaled the smoke and felt relaxed for the first time in hours.

"Shikamaru. I trust you were able to get the flute. If not-!" Erigor was cut off.

"Yeah, yeah I got it. The damn seal my ancestors used to lock it away was a pain in the ass to break through," reaching into his jacket, Shikamaru produced an evil look flute that almost looked alive with its three eyes.

"Excellent work Shikamaru. With Lullaby we'll finally be able to exact our revenge," turning to the members of Eisenwald, Erigor gave them all a gleeful smile, "Tonight shall be the beginning of the end for everyone! Now, I want this train ready and prepared to leave in 5 minutes!"

The Eisenwald mages cheered before scrambling to get the train prepared for its final destination.

"Erigor," Shikamaru addressed the silver haired man.

"What is it?"

"There are a few things that I should let you know," Erigor didn't like the sound of that.

"What happened?"

"Just before I unsealed Lullaby, a red-haired woman overheard the others use your name as well as Lullaby's. Don't worry; I took care of them before they could mouth off much more. Of course those idiots ran into some members of Fairy Tail first. Those flies didn't have the IQ to figure out where they even were, but the red head could be a problem," Shikamaru took a long drag on his cigarette.

"How so? Who is she?"

"Ever hear of Fairy Tail's Titania?"

Erigor's eyes widened at the title, "Titania, Fairy Tail's strongest woman," Erigor ground her name out.

"If she recognized your name or knows of Lullaby's legend… she'll be troublesome. However, she's not the only one I'm worried about," Shikamaru sighed as he flicked the cigarette butt away.

"What do you mean?"

"You've no doubt heard the rumors of Shadow Heart."

"Nothing but a copycat. You said it yourself, Shadow Heart is dead," Erigor looked Shikamaru dead in the eye, "Or is there something you forgot to tell me?"

"Shadow Heart is dead. But there are survivors and if this copycat is the real deal, whoever it is will be more troublesome than if all 10 Mage Saints were to show up. And if it's who I think it is, well I may know the same techniques but I'm nowhere near his level."

"Let them come," Erigor grinned cockily, "It doesn't matter anymore. We have Lullaby and no one will be able to stop us now."

0o0o0o0

"So you won't tell us the target?" Erza was about ready to tear Naruto a new one. For the last 2 hours Naruto had refused to give any more insight on Shikamaru and Eisenwald's plan. Angrily, Erza dove into the strawberry shortcake she'd purchased from the dining car when it was agreed that lunch was in order.

"Not yet. If I'm right, Oshibana is still in danger. As long as we stick to this route we'll be there in an hour," Naruto had taken to looking out the window again.

"But you ruled Oshibana as not being the target," Lucy pointed out.

"Doesn't mean Oshibana is in any less danger. Oshibana station is a main hub for traffic. If they can block access to the station they can control how quickly the Knights of Magi can send help for weeks. The devastation Eisenwald and Shikamaru can cause in that time will be catastrophic. Not to mention if Shikamaru believes his plan is in danger he'll fall back on one of his backup plans which could be anything," Naruto dug into one of the many bowls of ramen he'd purchased for eating.

"And what makes you so sure they won't use Lullaby at Oshibana? And how are you sure Shikamaru is the one calling the shots?" Gray bit into his sandwich, trying to debunk Naruto's theories, "I don't think someone like Erigor the Reaper would let someone tell him what to do."

"Simple. Shikamaru is more dangerous than Erigor could ever hope to be," Naruto spoke as if he'd just said a cute kitten was trying to be a lion.

"Then we'd have heard of him before," Erza pointed out. When it came to the Wizarding community, anyone who did anything was talked about. Even upstarts like Lucy, would get a rumor or two within their first few job requests.

"Not if you kill everyone who knows anything about you. Not if you disguise yourself to be someone you're not. There's an entire underworld that exists right in front of you and yet you can't see it. Shikamaru is but one demon that thrives there."

"H-How do you know this "underworld" exists Naruto?" Lucy asked a bit nervously.

"…" Naruto remained silent. Instead he sent a look to Erza briefly before he went back to waffling down his noodles.

"You're positive Shikamaru and Erigor will attack Oshibana?" Erza asked looking Naruto dead in the eyes for any sign of hesitation.

"Dead positive," Naruto's eyes didn't waver.

0o0 Clover Village – Guild Master Conference 0o0

"Master Makarov! Master Makarov! Mail from Mirajane!" at tiny blue bird flew its way to the guild master and dropped a letter into the elderly mage's waiting hand.

"Thank you," Makarov waved the bird's welcome off and released the seal which played the holographic recording of Mirajane, Fairy Tail's barmaid, for him.

"Master, I'm glad you made it to the conference safely! Something very wonderful has happened during your absence, Master! You'll never believe it! Erza, Natsu, _and_ Gray have formed a team. I think they might be the strongest team in Fairy Tail now! I thought I'd send you a letter to let you know! Bye now!" The cheerful image of the silver-haired woman disappeared and left Makarov staring at the letter in disbelief.

"_A team consisting of those three can only spell trouble for me! They do enough damage on their own!_" Makarov began to cry at the thought of all the citations he'd have to fill out because of his "children's" antics.

0o0 Oshibana Station 0o0

"Please vacate the premises! The station is closed due to a train derailment!" the official for the Oshibana station announced to the growing crowd of concerned citizens. Many were passerby's but others were travelers and businessmen that depended on the train to take them across Fiore and to its neighboring countries.

"Tell me what the situation inside is!" Erza had walked up to the official and grabbed his shoulder roughly.

The train had made an emergency stop 10 minutes outside of Oshibana and the group of mages were forced to make the last leg of the journey on foot.

"Who are you-?" the official couldn't finish asking as she punched him in the gut, effectively knocking him unconscious.

Moving to the next official, Erza asked the same question. Luckily he was quick to answer her.

"Hai! We're keeping it quiet but the dark guild, Eisenwald, has taken over the station. The local Knights of Magi have already been sent in! We haven't heard back from them yet," the official spoke as fast and clearly as he could.

"Thank you," Erza walked over to Naruto, Gray, Natsu, Lucy, and Happy who were waiting patiently, "Eisenwald is inside. We need to hurry. I don't think the Knights of Magi will be able to handle them. Especially if that other man is there as well."

"I love being right," Naruto smiled as Erza hit the back of his head.

"This is nothing to be happy about! Thousands of lives are at stake," Erza chastised the blond.

"I know," Naruto rubbed the spot where Erza hit him, "But I do have to admit I'm excited. It's been a while since I've been in a situation like this. I haven't been able to cut loose since returning to Fiore," Naruto's smile returned and he began to stretch, "Should be a good fight if Shikamaru is here."

"Now you got me all fired up! This Shikamaru sounds strong!" Natsu jumped up and down in excitement.

"How can you be excited? We could die in there!" Lucy seemed the only one to be worried about the possibility of dying.

"We have no choice. We can't just abandon the people of Oshibana to the whims of Eisenwald," Erza gave Lucy a determined look, "And I shall never let a comrade die, let alone a sister of Fairy Tail. We'll protect you the best we can."

Lucy gave the red-head an appreciative look.

Naruto simply watched the interaction between the two, not saying anything, "_Lucy needs to believe that she won't die here even if the odds are against us. The more calm she is, the better her survival chances are._"

"Let's not waste any more time," Gray spoke as the group made its way inside.

"I'm all fired up," Natsu punched his fists together as fire and smoke escaped his mouth.

"I just hope the Knights of Magi were able to handle everything," Lucy said, not really wanting to be dragged into a fight. Sure she could use her celestial keys to summon spirits to fight on her behalf but if they lost she was done for.

"Lucy is going to die!" Happy spoke happily to the terrified girl.

0o0o0o0

"This is!" Erza couldn't believe her eyes. Throughout the station bodies of both the Knights of Magi and members of Eisenwald laid in pools of their own blood. Each body had been horribly mutilated in some form or fashion, truly a fight between mages and men.

"This is horrible," Lucy was barely holding it together. How could people do this to one another? It was bad enough that other countries had begun to enter conflicts but to see it first hand in Fiore between countrymen.

"Erza!" Gray called out catching the attention of everyone, "This Knight is still alive!"

They rushed over to where Gray was bent over, helping the wounded knight into an upright position so he could speak better. His armor was badly singed and he had several holes through his torso.

"P-please. Help me," the knight reached out to the group in a vain attempt for medical aide.

"I'm sorry. None of us are healers. And we can't afford to extract you either," Erza spoke with a soft tone that Lucy had yet to see in the other woman but could still pick up her harsh commanding voice as well.

The soldier let a few tears slip, "Then I'll be in God's embrace soon," he coughed out blood harshly, "Those bastards at… command knew this would happen. They didn't… even deploy Knight Magi with us. We never stood a chance."

"Many would be hard pressed when facing a dark guild like Eisenwald. You did good to have lasted this long," Erza grasped the soldiers still outstretched hand and made her vow.

"Not… Eisenwald. The… monster," Erza and the other's felt their eyebrows rise in confusion.

"What monster?"

"The one… known as shadows… and death's children. At first… it was a massacre. We never made it pass… pass the stairs," weakly the soldier raised his other arm and pointed to the staircase leading to the second level of the station where the trains docked.

"All we… could see was this shadow that moved… before we could get a good look at it. It threw these… odd knives. Some were completely round. He… it… even breathed fire and… he turned us on each other. Some… how he used the shadows."

"So he is here," Naruto had been investigating other bodies and had pulled some of projectiles the Knight had described.

"We… never stood… a chance… against it. We were… sent here in case… it showed up. They knew. Knew… what those monsters were capable of. The rumors… are nothing compared to the truth. Don't… don't let it grab your shadow," the knight breathed his last breath and moved on from this world.

Erza let go of the knight's hand and closed his eyes. A silent rage building in her, "We're going to put an end to this. Both Eisenwald and this Shikamaru will pay for their crimes."

Lucy could feel a new resolve fill her at Erza's words. Wiping her tears aside she turned to see Naruto, Gray and Natsu already ascending the stairs, "Let's go Erza-san."

The red-head looked at her and nodded, both women walking together as equals. Two Fairy Tail mages prepared to fight for justice.

0o0 Oshibana Train Platform 0o0

"Halt!" The hundred Eisenwald members looked to the platform entrance to see Uzumaki Naruto, Erza Scarlet, Gray Fullbuster, Natsu Dragneel, Lucy, and Happy ready for a fight, "All of you are under arrest on behalf of the Knights of Magi and Council of Era! Surrender now and you shall receive a fair trial," Erza spoke with such ferocity that several of the dark mages were quivering.

"It seems you were correct about Titania, Shikamaru. We've been waiting for you, mages of Fairy Tail!" looking up the mages saw a shirtless man with a scythe sitting upon a lamp post.

"Erigor! Surrender yourself!"

"Hahahahahahaha! It seems the rumors didn't mention you had such a sense of humor!" Erigor mocked.

"Naruto, you're still too troublesome. It's good to see you survived," the new voice pulled the group's attention to a man in a black hooded cloak with red clouds decorating it in the midst of the rest of Eisenwald mages. Lucy's eyes widened at the familiar clouds.

"_It can't be? Can it?_"

"Shikamaru. It's been a long time hasn't it? It seems our reunion has once again pit us against each other, neh?" Naruto smiled sadly.

"It seems that would be the case. I hope you realize I can't let you stop me. I have the chance to avenge everyone and everything we lost. Things won't turn out like they did in Bosco. _He _isn't here to interfere."

"No, he isn't."

"How interesting, it seems an old comrade has appeared before you Shikamaru!" Erigor spoke up from his seat on the lamp post.

"Erigor! Leave them to us," Shikamaru never took his eyes off of Naruto.

"I understand! All of you don't fail me!" Erigor began to float as a ball of wind began to form beneath him, "If you'll excuse me, I have an important date to keep, if you know what I mean," Erigor began to chuckle before disappearing from sight.

"Don't," Shikamaru suddenly spoke to the now crouching Naruto, who seemed ready to jump after Erigor, "If you go after him, who'll protect your friends here?"

"Don't act like we're not here damn it!" Natsu roared, tired of not being acknowledged, "I'm going to kick all of your asses!"

"I have to agree with Natsu. We're don't need protection," Gray spoke irritated at the disrespect they'd received thus far.

"You guys might not but I do!" Lucy interjected.

"Natsu! Gray! Go after him! If the two of you work together not even Erigor the Shinigami can stop you!" at the mention of working together the two mages had butted heads but quickly changed their tune as Erza looked back at them.

"Aye!" they ran off in search of Erigor.

"Those Flies are after Erigor!"

An Eisenwald mage stepped forward wearing a pharaoh's cap and threw black wrapping at a railing pulling himself up, "I, the great Rayule, will take them down!"

"How troublesome, I'm afraid I'm going to have to hurt your friends Naruto. Our rematch will have to wait," Shikamaru allowed his clan's ancient shadow manipulation jutsu to envelope him and disappeared from sight.

"That leaves the rest to us three then," Erza said as she prepared for the coming onslaught.

"We need to be quick about this," Naruto spoke sharply, "Oshibana isn't his goal the guild master conference is," Erza's eyes widened.

"What!" the situation was worse than she thought, "Why didn't you say anything sooner!?"

"Like I said Shikamaru would figure out right away if we were trying to stall to keep them here and he would slink off to revise his plan with Erigor. This way we can take out his reinforcements and make it so we can outnumber him," Naruto scanned over the large number of Eisenwald members, "Hn, Shikamaru left these guys to tire us out."

"We must dispatch them quickly then if we're to save the guild masters. And don't think I've forgiven you for holding back on such information," Erza sent a quick glare toward the blond man, "Lucy prepare yourself."

Lucy's eyes widened as she realized that she was expected to fight as well, "R-Right!" Lucy steeled her nerves.

"What are you damn flies going to do huh? We outnumber you by nearly a hundred! You honestly think flies can stand up to the dark mages of Eisenwald!?" one of the dark mages began cracking his knuckles, loosening his fist up.

"Hey! Let's just kill the bastard have our way with the women! They'll make for some nice trophies!" the comment caused Erza to glare at the large group.

"Depraved scum!" Erza thrust her arm forward and called forth her magic to summon one of her many magical swords, "Not considering me to be a threat will be your last mistake!"

"She summoned a magic sword!" Lucy was beyond impressed with Erza's magic, she was mystified.

"Aye! Erza uses the magic called requip. It allows her to summon weapons that are stored in another space!" Happy explained to the blond girl.

"Amazing!"

"That's nothing special! We have plenty of magic swordsmen as well!" the dark mages charged forward only to be blown back and their weapons broken in an instant.

"Weak," Naruto was now in front of Erza, a sword he'd previously not had moments before now drawn and dripping with blood, "I guess it's to be expected of a country that hasn't seen war in nearly five centuries though."

"You can requip as well," Erza stated the obvious.

"Yeah, saved my hide a number of times and ensures I'm never without a weapon at hand," Naruto smiled her way.

"Bastard, eat this!" a number of Eisenwald mages charged a magic beam and fired at both Naruto and Erza who swiftly dodged the attacks before going on the offensive.

Erza continued to requip at a fast rate, going from her original broadsword to a spear before swapping off to twin swords, aiming to knock her opponents unconscious.

Naruto however stuck with the straight katana he'd summoned and continuously began to cut his opponents into pieces with precision, carving a path of blood into the dark mages.

"What's with these two? How can flies be this strong?" an Eisenwald mage with rat like features could only stare in horror.

"Erza… I've heard that name before and Shikamaru said someone like him might appear as well. Could this be him, a man that can challenge even the shadows of death?" a rather overweight mage who was hanging back questioned.

"Gotcha!" Lucy felt arms wrap around her and cold steel press against her neck.

"KYAAAA!" the scream caused both Naruto and Erza to stop fighting and look in her direction to see that Lucy and Happy were being held hostage.

"Both of you drop your weapons and surrender or else your little friends here are going to pay!" the dark mage holding onto Lucy grinned evilly as he allowed his free hand to roam Lucy's body.

Erza stared a long moment at her captured friends before reluctantly dropping her twin swords.

"You as well! Drop your sword or I spill the Bitch's blood!" this time the mage holding Happy yelled the command at Naruto.

Lucy looked between the Erza and Naruto, fear evident in her eyes, "Help me!" the blade was pushed deeper into her neck.

"Quiet you!" the mage holding onto Lucy scowled causing the girl to tense up, "Drop the sword!"

Naruto sighed and allowed his blade to slide from his grasp before closing his eyes, "Lucy, do you remember that day in the diner? Do you remember how excited you were about wanting to join Fairy Tail? How much it meant to you?" Naruto began to walk forward toward the captured girl.

"Hey! Don't move! Stay where you are or I'll open her neck open all over the floor!" Naruto continued to walk forward.

"Naruto stop moving! They'll kill Lucy and Happy!" Erza's shout was ignored.

"I remember how disappointed you sounded when you said you weren't strong enough to join. How you believed you didn't belong among famous mages like Titania, Salamander, and Gildarts," Naruto's body began to glow and the pigments surrounding his eyes began to turn orange, "Do you remember what I told you?" Naruto stopped walking forward fourteen feet from the captured Fairies.

"_He said to believe in myself. He wants me to believe in my own power_," Lucy looked down at her celestial keys before looking at Naruto with a new resolve, "I believe Naruto!"

"Good," Naruto opened his eyes to reveal orange irises and slanted pupils and his body stopped glowing to reveal a blood red cloak with black flames stitched along the edges before disappearing from sight and the two captors found themselves embedded in the far wall of the station before jumping back into the fray while Lucy pulled forth one of her keys.

"Open, Gate of the Giant Crab! Cancer!" a cross between a crab and male hair dresser materialized next to Lucy, snipping his scissors to announce his arrival.

"Cancer! Another fight, shrimp?" Cancer asked looking to Lucy about the current situation.

"Take them out with style!" Lucy pointed toward the Eisenwald mages with anger.

"What a stupid hairstyle!"

"Crack that crab open!"

Cancer looked at the charging dark mages and smirked, "Shrimp!" in an instant he cut not only their hair but also their weapons to pieces.

"My hair!" was the immediate cry.

"Nice cut, shrimp!" Cancer once more snipped his scissors and all of his opponents fell unconscious.

"Good work Lucy!" Erza called out, now wielding a large axe. Lucy beamed at the acknowledgement, "Although I have an issue with his sentence ender, it should have been something like snip," both Lucy and Cancer felt deflated at the statement.

0o0o0o0

"Work together?! You gotta be kidding me!" Gray complained as he and Natsu ran down a long hallway in search of Erigor.

"You can't mix fire and ice! It's impossible!" Natsu shouted in agreement.

"Erza's far too selfish thinking you and I could work together!"

"She's always dictating what we do!"

"I can handle Erigor just fine by myself!" the two now had stopped running and were yelling at each other.

"DON'T COPY ME!" the two glared at one another, both right in each other's faces. Looking ahead briefly the noticed the hallway diverged into a T.

"We can split up at last," Gary said stepping to the right path while Natsu took the left, "Natsu. We're dealing with an idiot that wants to unleash deadly magic. If you find him, you better not lose."

"He's also an idiot who picked a fight with Fairy Tail. I'm going to turn him into ash!" Natsu smirked at Gray before they both glared at one another and turned away.

"Make sure not to die," Gray muttered it lightly under his breath but Natsu had heard him.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," the two mages took off without another word.

0o0 Gray 0o0

The ice-make mage stood in front of the studio broadcasting door before he kicked it open to find nobody there, "Kuso. I was sure that they would want to broadcast it so everyone in the city could hear it," Gray ground his teeth in frustration, "Bastards. Just what the hell are they planning?"

Gray jumped forward in a flash avoiding the oncoming attack from above him. Twirling around Gray saw an Eisenwald mage lowering himself down out of the ventilation system with the aid of magical bindings that connected to his fingers.

"You damn Flies have good hunches," Rayule smirked wildly at gray, "You're quickly becoming obstacles in our way."

"Seems that there's more to this than we thought. Impressive for a bunch of morons," Gary smirked arrogantly as his taunt got to the other mage.

"You damn Fly!" Rayule launched his binding forward, laughing as Gray dodged continuously unable to counter, "There's no escape from my Urumi swords!"

"Tch. Ice Make: Shield!" Gray quickly produced his shield of ice blocking the bendable swords, "Ice Make: Knuckle!" fist shaped arms of ice launched forth and blasted Rayule through one of the broadcasting walls, "Tell me what your _real_ plan is. If you bastards never planned on broadcasting Lullaby over the speakers than why take over the station?"

"Heeheehee," Rayule laughed, "Erigor's magic Wind Wall should've been activated by now. All of flies won't be able to escape and stop us!"

"What?" Gray stepped forward and grabbed Rayule by the coat of his jacket and pushed him up against a wall, "I don't like it when things begin to get confusing. Explain!"

"It's easy. We simply created a cage to hold some flies is all. We only took over this station to block the traffic and create a nice distraction," Rayule smirked, "The road to Clover station should be nice and clear."

"What," Gray tightened his grip.

"Heh. The only way to Clover village is by train… that is unless you can fly like Erigor!" Rayule extended his Urumi, "Don't you know what's in Clover right now? Try to remember!" Rayule attacked causing Gray to jump back, "You're full of openings!"

"_Clover… that's where the old man and the other guild masters are holding their conference! The guild masters are their real target?!_" Gray gritted his teeth in anger.

"Hahaha! Finally remembered did you? It's too late to do anything about it, though!" Rayule's Urumi once more flew forward and several embedded themselves into Gray's arms causing the ice-make mage to wince in pain.

"Going after those old powerful mages is pretty ballsy," Gray gritted out, ignoring the stinging now rattling his arms.

"Getting those ignorant old bastards to listen to the flute will be easy! There's zero percent chance Erigor will fail! I'm sure of it! Rah!" Rayule launched another line of his Urumi and wrapped Gray around the torso, "And you pests are stuck here. No one can stop him! We're going to get our revenge against everyone who suppressed us!"

Gray merely smirked to Rayule's irritation.

"The hell are you smirking at?!" Rayule glared at his captive only for his eyes to widen as a sudden blizzard started to emit from the ice-make mage and his Urumi froze over.

"Thanks for telling me your plan. If you had stayed quiet we more than likely would've thought Erigor was going to broadcast Lullaby elsewhere in the station," Gray broke free of the bindings, "We're going to stop you. And we'll make you pay for going after the guild masters. Even if they are ignorant old bastards, they're like parents to us!" ice had begun to crawl up Rayule's body and freeze him in place as Gray reached out with his right arm and grip Rayule's face, "Ice Make: Ice Body!"

Rayule screamed as his entire body became encased in ice and his innards slowly began to freeze over.

Gray turned and walked out through the whole in the wall he'd made earlier before stopping briefly, "I'll show you that there's a guild more terrifying than dark guilds out there," blood slowly dripped from both his arms.

0o0o0o0

Erza panted hard as she looked at the 20 remaining members of Eisenwald, "Still this many. We need to end this soon."

"Just how strong are these damn flies?"

"That blond-bastard is strong too. It's like he's toying with us!"

"What the heck is up with eyes? He looks almost like a fro-," the mage was cut off as Naruto appeared before him and punched him square in the chest, sending him flying.

"Naruto!" Erza called out to the man, "Back away! I'm going to end this!" Naruto jumped back to where Lucy, Cancer, and Happy were defending themselves from as Erza's body began to glow as her armor began to detach and a new coat of arms took its place.

"What's happening to her?" Lucy asked unsure as to what Erza was doing.

"Erza Scarlett also known as Titania, Queen of the Fairies, she's known as the strongest woman in Fairy Tail, using a magic known as "The Knight," a unique form of requip which allows her to swap magical armor to increase her abilities," as Naruto spoke Erza's new armor finally finished materializing making her look like an angelic knight with four metallic wings and a wheel of swords circling behind.

"Dance, my swords! Circle Sword!" a whirlwind of blades struck the unfortunate dark mages and only two of the hundred man army that Erigor had brought with him remained.

"Damn those two! If it weren't for them everybody would still be ok," the rat-faced member of Eisenwald glared at Erza, while the obese dark mage took a long hard look at Naruto.

"I know him," the overweight mage began to sweat, "That man… a red coat with black flames, blond hair, blue eyes, and three whisker-like scars on both his cheeks, but Shikamaru said he died. He died on the front in Bosco. The Demon Frog-Sage of the Hagoromo clan who heads the main campaign to overturn the government of Bosco, Naruto Uzumaki!"

Naruto simply stared at the two remaining mages, choosing to remain silent as he received questioning glances from the Erza, Lucy, and Happy.

"I don't care! They will pay for what the-," once again Naruto had disappeared only to appear before the rat-looking mage and thrust his katana into the man. As the man died Naruto let his sage form slip from him and unquip his red coat before pulling his sword out of the now dead mage.

"SCREW THIS!" the overweight mage ran for his life.

"Lucy, Happy go after him," Erza couldn't remove her eyes from the bloody sword in Naruto's hand.

"Me!" both Lucy and Happy said at the same time.

Erza only had to look in their direction before Lucy took off running with Happy not far behind.

"You shouldn't have killed him like that," Erza finally said after a minute of silence between her and Naruto.

"It wouldn't have mattered. He wanted to kill us so I killed him first," Naruto spoke in a neutral tone.

"That doesn't matter! He wasn't prepared and had no way of protecting himself. What you did was nothing short of murder," Erza glared at her former friend.

"That's funny, when did we leave the battlefield? He had every intent of not only killing us but also raping you and Lucy. I learned the hard way that you can't let your enemy live, no matter what. Give the enemy even a fraction of a second and everyone you care for is dead or worse," Naruto pulled out a cloth and began cleaning his sword before sheathing it once more.

"You could've gone this whole fight without killing a single one, couldn't you?" Erza asked refusing to look at him now.

"And you could've finished this fight sooner as well, but you didn't. It seems we've both changed more than we thought. We can settle this moral dispute later. We still have Shikamaru and Erigor to deal with," Naruto began to walk off.

Nodding her agreement Erza quickly fell in step before both mages began to run to catch up with the others.

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Ending Soundtrack – Lost Heaven by L'Arc en Ciel

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	5. Prologue: Three Survivors

It's been awhile since I posted anything and felt like giving you guys a little something to look forward too while I finish up other fics and school work. I just finished up my Japanese midterms on Thursday so I have some free time once more to work on other stuff.

We have also hit 51,327 views, 788 favs, and 889 alerts as of this post. I want to thank everyone who has read, favorite, and alerted By Any Means. All of your support has kept me going to keep working and fleshing out the complexity of the story I wish to share with all of you.

If you guys have any questions feel free to use this chapter to ask in reviews. I'll answer in the actual post for this chapter.

So 'till next time, ja ne!

0o0o0o0

Fiore, a neutral kingdom of 17 million, is a world filled with magic. Magic is the people's source of income, both bartering and selling and using the mystical arts to make a living. These people became known as Mages and belonged to guilds that accepted jobs sent to them.

Long ago there existed a guild that fought outside the law in order to preserve it. This guild produced numerous legends that became infamous in history. They dirtied their hands in blood to protect the peace of Fiore. This guild was known as Shadow Heart, a dark guild.

0o0 Unknown Location 0o0

"You have no clue as to where we are, do you?" Sakura deadpanned at her raven haired teammate.

"Hn," Sasuke rolled his eyes at Sakura as she complained about traveling down the unfamiliar path.

"Lay off him Sakura, I'm sure he's just lost in thought about a certain silver-haired barmaid," Tenten couldn't help chuckling at the male's expense.

"I don't get why you're so scared of her. The more you ignore her, the more she's just going to be mad at you," Sakura sighed, "I bet you don't even know what she's mad about, huh!"

"Remind me again why I team up with the two of you?" Sasuke asked rather annoyed at the two female's insistence on dragging his love life up whenever they could.

"Because we're the only ones besides Laxus and Erza who can stand your attitude. You would think having Anko and that pervert raising us would change that cold exterior of yours," Tenten placed her hands behind her head as she walked leisurely, "You think those two are ever going to break that sexual tension and just fuck already?"

"They've probably been screwing like rabbits since before the purge. What do you think Sasuke?" Sakura asked but received silence, "Interesting thought. I think so too," Sakura and Tenten began to giggle as Sasuke's face reddened.

"I still can't believe I keep missing the new comer. Mira was telling me about her and she sounds like someone really fun to tease," Tenten pouted at missed laughs at another's expense.

"She does get embarrassed rather easily. Just don't go overboard Ten, at least until she understands it isn't a personal attack," Sakura sent a warning look to the brunette to get her point across.

"Ever the spoil sport. Fine, I'll go easy on her. What are we even doing this close to the border anyway? I thought the request was toward the coast?" Tenten once more pouted in annoyance, "I packed for the beach and guys damn it!"

"Checking on something," Sasuke spoke sharply, clearly annoyed with Tenten's childish behavior.

"Ever since the Hargeon Massacre a month ago, Sasuke has wanted to check the old Uchiha hawk's nest," Sakura explained, "I told Mira that we'd be gone 3 weeks to give us time to check it out. And yes, we'll still be able to hit the beach or else Sasuke would be six feet under already," Sakura answered the question that died on Tenten's tongue.

"Why are we even bothering checking this place out? All the safe houses were burned to ashes, which is all we're going to find by the way," Tenten deadpanned only to flinch at the glare Sasuke directed at her.

"The place we're going to is a place only the Uchiha knew about," the obvious "you should be honored to even be brought along" was omitted.

"Whatever Duckbutt, as long as your ancestors left some pointy things behind for me to take, it could be Hell we're going to for all I care," Tenten began to drool as she remembered the various weapons the Uchiha had been renowned to keeping in their hidden hideaways.

0o0o0o0

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